There is something endearingly intimate about Nigel Shafran’s latest publication. Its polystyrene covers radiate warmth in your hands, while its non-durable quality makes you browse its contents preciously. Topped with a sticker stating “The People on the Street” in black ink, it feels like an ode to London’s dispossessed. Familial even: its scrap-book paper printed with photographs of singular meetings and meaningful encounters, with individuals like Michelle and Dave and Jane named at the bottom of the page. As Shafran affirms, “they are us; these are our fathers and sons and mothers”. With private rents continuing to rise, it becomes increasingly likely that more of us will share their fate; when the book was published in November 2018, the incidence of rough sleepers in London had increased by 17% in the past year.[1]
For three decades Shafran has documented the overlooked, the quotidian and ephemeral. His photographs are full of intrigue, whether considering the imminent mystique of items on a draining board (Washing-up 2000 [2000]) or the conglomeration of goods along a supermarket conveyor belt (Supermarket checkouts [2005]). The People on the Street is equally idiosyncratic, marrying his interest in the commonplace to a heartfelt social concern.
Between 2016 and 2017 Shafran approached those living on London’s streets to ask if they would take his photo; discussing what caused them to become homeless and offering them food in the process. The resulting book depicts him through all seasons across Central and North London, wet in a raincoat or framed by a blue sky, with areas known for rough sleeping like Charing Cross and Euston recurring. Each image taken is included without concern for artistic merit, with Shafran variously shown gesticulating in front of blurred bus adverts, obscured by bustling crowds, out of focus or cast in shadow. These photographs instead capture life as it happens, unpoised. The decision to print on sugar-paper further distances us from aesthetic concerns – degrading the quality of the digital image – and refocuses our attention on the subject of homelessness itself.
Addressing his subjects without directly documenting them proves interestingly self-reflexive. By turning the camera on himself, Shafran raises questions about the ethics of representation and photography in an industry where, as he puts it, “privileged, often white, wealthy middle-class people [go] off to take pictures of poverty and war and whatever, then come back and stick it on the gallery wall”. He’s cognisant of being a part of this group, evident in a self-scrutinising approach. Subjected to the camera’s unapologetic gaze, these photographs exhibit an appealing lack of vanity, particularly those of him being molested by an owner’s excitable dog or instructed to climb a tree. Meanwhile, the inclusion of four images at home of his son’s doodled hand – initially striking a random note – display Shafran’s awareness of his good fortune, compared with those unable to leave the streets behind for similarly cosy idylls. The book’s production indicates equal consideration towards the exploitation and glamorisation of deprivation, remaining functional and aesthetically unexceptional, with sales of the book up to £7000 being donated to homelessness charities.
It’s hard not to feel that The People on the Street implicates us all. We may see ourselves in the faces of impatient shoppers caught dashing by; the curious tourists wondering why a homeless person is wielding a camera; or in Shafran’s warm acknowledgement of another human’s value. We may even find ourselves in the shoes of the person on the street – usually on the periphery of our vision – needing to be recognised as part of a common human family.
– reviewed for Photomonitor by Daniel Pateman
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[1] www.theguardian.com/society/2018/oct/31/record-number-of-people-are-sleeping-rough-in-london [31st October 2018].
For information and ordering The People on the Street please visit : nigelshafran.com
Images below courtesy of Nigel Shafran:
Sacilius, Oxford Street, W1 Ron, Charring Cross Road, WC2 Dave, Euston Square Station, NW1 Jane, Oxford Street, W1 Mike, Piccadilly Circus, W1 Simone and his dog Bruno, Rue Tronchet, Paris, 75008
