Homecoming: Roses of the night : I moved away from Dalston over thirty-five years ago. The Hackney I left behind was a very different one to which I returned. I currently live in an area that was pretty much a no-go zone for teenagers who didn’t live there, especially for the more flamboyant like myself. On my homecoming not only did I notice Hackney’s previously neglected architecture, but also a sense of pride in its presentation and on my journeys home throughout last year I started to document my discoveries of unexpected jewels in the night streets. I concentrated mostly on roses, which feature regularly in my work as symbols of life, sex and death. I collected them like I was collecting companions. Over time, as I amassed many images, with encouragement, I decided to share this unexpected journey of recovery for Hackney and for myself. The image of Hackney by night had been transformed in my mind from an imaginary urban despair to a tangible sense of hope and beauty in the face of adversity. It’s a story not just of Hackney, but also of London, and of coming home.

There will be over twenty archival giclee prints on fine art paper available to purchase in limited editions of five.