London Nights
Various Photographers Museum of London, 150 London Wall, EC2Y 5HN 24 AUGUST – 9 NOVEMBER £12.00 / £6.00 with National Art Pass
The Museum of London’s new exhibition London Nights explores the famous capital after hours, revealing its most well-known landmarks in a different light as well as documenting the more hidden areas. Through a mixture of portraiture, documentary, conceptual photography and film, London is illuminated in a variety of ways, bringing an original and eye-opening take on one of the most photographed cities in the world.
The exhibition works on three sections: London Illuminated, Dark Matters and Switch On Switch Off. London Illuminated features scenes of the city lit by both artificial and natural light, and photographs here span from the early 1900s, up to the present day. Opening the exhibition are works by Paul Martin and George Davidson Reid. Paul Martin was known for his shots of London by gaslight, a process which must have been incredibly lengthy and requiring a lot of skill with film, darkroom manipulation and the camera itself. Many photographs included in this section are documentary works, however, the various forms of light provided by the night allow the artistic means for them to also become excellent works of art.
Mercie Lack was an amateur photographer working around the 1930s in London, documenting well-known architecture as well as interesting shadows created through darkness: many of her works including emerging figures of people at night. Her lantern slides are grouped together in a form of linear collage which makes the work ever-more powerful and eye capturing. These images were largely unseen until now, and it is thought they were created to show to fellow members of the Camberwell Camera Club, of which she was awarded two medals. From here, works continue into more modern times with landmarks taking a back seat and more rural areas of London becoming favoured.
The Brandon Estate photographed by Mike Seaborne in 1999 is a perfect example of modern living in London even to this date. The image of the tower block has become heavily symbolised since events such as the Grenfell tower disaster, reminding us of the polar ways of life in capital cities such as London. Another striking image is London from the ISS, 2016, a bird’s eye shot taken by astronaut Tim Peake of the city from a unique perspective. This shows exactly just how illuminated the city is after hours, being clearly visible from outer space. Not only are the central areas shining bright as expected, but even the outskirts and vast surroundings are lit up: further reminding us just how large this city is and how much exists beyond the centre.
The next section, Dark Matters, aims to confront the more threatening side of the capital at night: examining how the dark can evoke feelings of threat, isolation and vulnerability. The images within this section are both works of documentary photography and staged scenarios. One image which immediately caught my attention was Herbert Mason’s photograph of St Pauls during the Blitz (29 December 1940). I had previously studied this image in my Photography A-Level and remembered how blown away I was when I first encountered it. Mason took the image from the roof of the Daily Mail building, where he was a staff photographer at the time. It depicts one of London’s most iconic and best-loved landmarks, St Pauls, emerging triumphantly from the smoke, ash and rubble of a nearby explosion, most likely meant to destroy the building. This works as a beautiful symbol of London’s strength, hope and willpower in a time of devastation and threat.
The final section Switch On Switch Off observes how Londoners work, rest and play when the sun goes down. Nick Turpin’s 2016 series On the Night Bus contain some of the most stunning and recently taken images in the exhibition. Turpin captures commuters from transport hub Elephant and Castle station on the long and painful slog back home after work. He takes his photographs through bus windows which are steamed up and drenched with raindrops, creating unique frames and patterns to surround the subjects; some of them appearing almost celestial. Turpin is interested in the anonymity in this ‘no mans land’ between work and home, a time when we are at one with our thoughts and ourselves. The reflection of colour upon the windows, as well as the variety of textures makes some of the images appear unreal, more like paintings or abstract works. These works are reminiscent of Barry Lewis’ black and white 1977 series Coming and Going, which similarly captures commuters through transport windows in-between work and home, emphasising the fact that not much has changed.
The exhibition finishes with capturing the more fun and rebellious elements of London’s nightlife, including works documenting London’s Grime scene and famous clubs. Despite the exhibition being a great body of documentary photography overall, it is questionable whether it is trying to achieve something more. The different areas of the exhibition are quite hard to pick up on, making it seem disjointed in parts. The images are also not in chronological order, which is obviously aiming at a more creative agenda but can be quite confusing and frustrating. Overall, still well worth a visit for stand out works of this beautiful city at night, but may be trying to bite off more than it can chew…
OVERALL RATING: ****
https://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/museum-london/whats-on/exhibitions/london-nights
