Signs Of Development

Signs Of Development is an ongoing project that repurposes the advertising imagery found all over London. On the street level hoardings around luxury development sites, property developers and marketeers illustrate their vision of the near future. There is a disconnect between the existing population of an area and the developers digital visions of who will soon be occupying the new ‘luxury’ flats. Furthermore, many of these properties are bought off-plan by overseas investors as safety deposit boxes rather than to be occupied as homes. This influx of global wealth, combined with the commodification of home, impacts and displaces our communities.

When my son was four, I was served a Section 21 ‘no-fault’ eviction notice with eight weeks to vacate my home of six years. The new owner of our block wanted to double the rental fees with no option to remain. He also evicted all of my neighbours from the other 25 flats. Most had to leave London. This is not just a London phenomenon however, it occurs in every city in England. Government policy of capping housing benefit below market rates effectively forces the poor out into rural areas. The current housing crisis affects most of society.

The work also appropriates the language of the super prime market and global capital flows, extracting key phrases from their marketing material. My work explores themes around the current housing crisis in London and beyond, the commodification of home, hyper-gentrification, social cleansing, the politics of space and invites dialogue on where we go from here, or perhaps ultimately, where will we live?