"21st Century Slum": Life, Loss and Resistance in North Kensington
The title of this exhibition stems from an RBKC council planning officer’s admission in 1976 that local regeneration was an "architectural disaster" creating a "21st century slum."
Portrait of Grace who has lived on the estate since she was 28.
"I saw the strength of neighbours who looked out for one another in a system that didn't hear them. These portraits are a testament to their warmth." — Kevin Percival
MORLEY GALLERY NORTH KENSINGTON
Wornington Road, London W10 5QQ
Brownbaby and Morley Gallery North Kensington presents an exhibition of landmark photos, films, and artwork by Kevin Percival and Constantine Gras documenting 15 years of local upheaval. Spanning the Silchester, Lancaster West, and Wornington Green Estates, the show captures the lived experience of a community navigating gentrification and the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire that resulted in the loss of 72 lives.
The title of the exhibition stems from an RBKC council planning officer’s admission in 1976 that local regeneration was an "architectural disaster" creating a "21st century slum." Against this backdrop, Percival and Gras serve as artistic witnesses to a vibrant multi-cultural community that has lived on these “slums” and who fought back against managed decline challenging those in power.
Film still from Strawberries Are For The Future (2018) A film maker's relationship with the garden in the shadow of Grenfell Tower and the gardener, Stewart Wallace, who tends the contaminated plot of land, reflecting on when his strawberries will once again grow. The film was shown as a rough cut at the Gate Cinema, Notting Hill in 2019, but this will be its world premiere.
Looking South-East across the estate from Thompson House towards Katherine House. From left to right: Pepler House (left foreground), Katherine House (middle background), Wells House and the community garden, and Rendle House. Winter, 2017.
Looking West and slightly North from Thompson House stairwell. Paddington mainline stretches out towards Kensington Gasworks.
The Artists
Kevin Percival: Museum photographer (V&A and Science Museum) and documentary artist.
Percival was a housing co-op member who lived on Wornington Green estate for a decade. He offers a rare "insider" perspective. His photography blends intimate portraits of neighbours with an exploration of the changing environment, recording the self-help spirit of a community enduring 16 years (and counting) of demolition and displacement as the estate is remade into Portobello Square where one bed flats now sell for £700,000.
Constantine Gras: BAFTA-winning filmmaker and V&A Museum Community Artist in Residence.
Gras has worked in North Kensington over the past 15 years creatively exploring and exposing its troubled social history. He uniquely documented residents voices that were not listened to before the Grenfell Tower fire and also joined those who climbed into trees to protest the loss of over 200 trees on the Wornington Green estate.
Live, Laugh, Love. A large-scale collaborative drawing created in 2015 by children from Grenfell Tower, Lancaster West Estate and Constantine Gras.
"In a borough where the green space and the affordable living is under threat, these artistic works made with and for residents are an essential record of resilience and survival " — Constantine Gras
Detail from the Latymer Mapping Project (2012-13). A community-based art and research initiative led by Constantine Gras in collaboration with the arts collective group+work (Natalie Marr and Emily Ballard) that resulted in an alternative map of North Kensington that reflected its complex and troubled history.
High Rise in a Flattened World: Oil pastels (2015) This drawing was informed by the architectural vision of the original architects of Lancaster West Estate, including Nigel Whitbread, the lead architect for Grenfell Tower and the social and political constraints they faced during the design and building of the estate from the 1960s-1970s.
Film still from Strawberries Are For The Future (2018) A film maker's relationship with the garden in the shadow of Grenfell Tower and the gardener, Stewart Wallace, who tends the contaminated plot of land, reflecting on when his strawberries will once again grow. The film was shown as a rough cut at the Gate Cinema, Notting Hill in 2019, but this will be its world premiere.
Portrait of Cheryl, who has lived in Ladbroke Grove since the 70s, and first moved into her current flat in 1975. ‘It’s a nice quiet block I’ve been living in, and I’ve been fortunate to have good neighbours'.
OPENING TIMES
Thursday 7th / 14th / 21st / 28th - 6-9pm
Friday 8th / 15th / 22nd / 29th - 2-6pm
Saturday 9th / 16th / 23rd / 30th - 12-4pm
Events & Workshops
Daytime and early evening events to bring you closer to the art and the artist
PRIVATE VIEW Thursday 7th May 6-9pm
FILM SCREENING/ARTIST TALK Saturday 16th May 2-4pm
The world premiere of Strawberries Are For The Future, a never-before-seen film set in the shadow of Grenfell.
This will be followed by an exhibition and Q&A talk with photographer Kevin Percival and artist/film maker Constantine Gras. They’ll be talking about their experiences of living and working on Silchester, Lancaster West and Wornington Green Estate and the power of resistance manifested through art.
Hosted by Tobias Laurent Belson, artist and gallery curator, and Dhelia Snoussi, Social Justice Archivist for the North Kensington Social Justice Archive.
