Sunday 10 February 2013

Practicing photography (3) - Brixton Market

Brixton has always been attractive for many reasons, the market, musical venues (Brixton Academy), its history, the blend of different cultures and the way it has changed. For me it is a place with a lot of interest but also somewhere I walk to every day after dropping the little one off in the morning. I catch the tube in Brixton station and I have to say it is much better than the Northern Line, more space and more trains. 

A website with info and old photos from Brixton tells me more about the market, the lifeblood of Brixton. The main bit of the market is on Electric Avenue which was the first shopping street to be lit by electricity. It used to be a high end shopping street for I would guess wealthy Edwardians and Victorians. It is quite different these days, being a fresh-produce market with music and clothes, displaying bright colours and a range of varied foods reflecting Brixton's multiethnic population. You can find fresh as well as dried fish (which I need to learn how to cook), thai pastes such as tom yum, jerk seasoning, jamaican patties, argentinian empanadas and all types of fruits and vegetables.  
One of the alleyways on Reliance Arcade. You can buy freshly made popcorn at the top of the arcade, a temptation every time I walk past in the evening.

The main part of the market on Electric Avenue.

This is the same avenue c.1912 - courtesy of urban75 (Lambeth archives).
I love this colourful, thick leggins! 
Fresh and nicely displayed fish. 
Yam, plantane bananas,  squash and other vegetables. 
Fresh meat and a man that accepted to pose for me.  I should have been closer and not include the fridge bar that cuts through the image (next time...) 
Another arcade on Market Row. Many new bars and restaurants open here as this is becoming a trendy place. At the end of the Arcade at Franco Manca pizzeria, you can eat delicious pizzas with a very fine crust. 
The same arcade in the 1960s - love the pram and tricycles. 
Another new and trendy place to eat with a very 'literary' name - Bukowski. 
A special focus on peppers for their colours and taste. We have been using them quite a bit recently for an Albanian dish - stuffed peppers. 

2 comments:

  1. Fantastic photography, I can almost smell the market.
    Great idea to contrast with the past, very creative.
    Thanks Laura, I've enjoyed reading and learnt something about London I didn't know, Electric Avenue. Tracy

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  2. Thanks Tracy, Brixton is such a melting pot of cultures and history that is fascinating. Pleased I shared some of my fascination and the facts with you. All the best. Laura

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