Deptford High Street
This little book is the outcome of a 18-month project (2009-2011), which aimed at utilising photographic research to meet local people, gain local knowledge and create my sense of belonging to the area I had just moved to. I photographed and spoke to shopkeepers, customers and residents on the High Street, asking them to share their experiences of this street and Deptford in general. Lived experience is deeply embedded in history; even if interpretations are subjective, as psychological truths these accounts are just as important as factually reliable accounts. Story-telling reduces the gulf between the researcher and participants, which is necessary in building relationships with the people whose history is being talked about. In the pursuit of more uninhibited responses, participants were assured that comments would remain anonymous and that images would not correspond to the comments. Through these stories of lived experiences I gained a better understanding of the social and political history of Deptford and how different people perceive the changes taking place in the area. This project formed the basis of lasting friendships and relationships and led to other projects in the local area which can be viewed on my website (anitastrasser.com). The project was also a precursor to Deptford is Changing: a creative exploration of the impact of gentrification, a book I published in 2020. The book is available for reading in Deptford Lounge, West Greenwich Library, Goldsmiths Library and Special Collections.
This little book is the outcome of a 18-month project (2009-2011), which aimed at utilising photographic research to meet local people, gain local knowledge and create my sense of belonging to the area I had just moved to. I photographed and spoke to shopkeepers, customers and residents on the High Street, asking them to share their experiences of this street and Deptford in general. Lived experience is deeply embedded in history; even if interpretations are subjective, as psychological truths these accounts are just as important as factually reliable accounts. Story-telling reduces the gulf between the researcher and participants, which is necessary in building relationships with the people whose history is being talked about. In the pursuit of more uninhibited responses, participants were assured that comments would remain anonymous and that images would not correspond to the comments. Through these stories of lived experiences I gained a better understanding of the social and political history of Deptford and how different people perceive the changes taking place in the area. This project formed the basis of lasting friendships and relationships and led to other projects in the local area which can be viewed on my website (anitastrasser.com). The project was also a precursor to Deptford is Changing: a creative exploration of the impact of gentrification, a book I published in 2020. The book is available for reading in Deptford Lounge, West Greenwich Library, Goldsmiths Library and Special Collections.
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Deptford never really recovered but it's nothing compared to what it used to
be like. What was normal then would be seen as horrendous now. Maybe
all the new development will give Deptford the chance to rise out of its ashes and
become what it once was - a wellto-do area.
A typical Saturday when I was a kid: my mum used to drag us down here on a bus.
We'd do a bit of shopping, go for breakfast off the High Street, do more shopping,
and then take a cab back to Sidcup. There used to be a guy at the market who sold
fruit and veg, and what I remember about him is, this is 36 years ago, that he kept
shouting "10 pence is 2 bob and 2 bob is 10 pence."
It used to be so lively here but now, like all London markets, it's gone a bit dead.
There is no variety - there are about 30 hairdressers, lots of food joints of
the same kind. Everything is the same. You used to be able to buy clothes here from
really good stalls and independent shops, but not now. In the past, the council
used to check how many shops of each kind there already were and would stop any
more from coming in if there were enough.
Deptford High Street has changed so much, it's unreal. Off the High Street there
were all these parallel streets with houses and three pubs on each street, then they
were knocked down - in the 70s I think. The market used to stretch from the
beginning of Douglas Way down to New Cross train station but this must have
changed when they built the current Albany and the McMillan Park. Lady Albany
built the original Albany in an attempt to get the 'gut girls' away from their work in
the 'gutting sheds' and teach them some manners, as she objected to women
having to do such work.
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