The body of work originates from an archive digging into images taken during my four years long experience in London six years ago.
My stay in London coincided with a difficult moment in my life. I lived in 20 square meters where I spent most of my spare time. I watched passers-by from my window. It felt safe.
Many of the images shot during those years had never been opened since. Many of them were then rejected and archived. While I was browsing through the images I tried to find a thread that could lead me to a different interpretation of my story. After so much time I felt the need to work again with those images to make sense of my experience, interpret and archive it.
What follows is a short text I jotted down then which might help understand some of the feelings behind the images – or not.
In London I saw passers-by, unfamiliar faces, in a hurry towards an unknown day, carrying their faces with pride as ennobled by an inner awareness.
In London I saw, restaurants full of guests, oblivious and happy as in a journey to eternal youth.
In London I saw, windows, blind eyes, altars, shameless offers, tributes of flowers.
In London I spied on windows at night, saw glimpses of hands, legs, televisions turned onto the cool of the evening, conversations, tired gestures, rest.
In London I saw caricatures of trees, standing courageous, besieged by houses.
In London I spent weeks in a square meter and saw life through passers by. I saw rich women and poor men. And everything in between. I saw the self confidence of a young man grow, a friendship flourish and die, a love born.
In London I saw boys and girls lying in the sun in their best clothes.
I saw neglected spaces, monster buildings, dirt.
In London I wandered unknown, thought I heard someone calling me – and turned.