Hugh Marwood: Look Again, Again

All Images: Digital Photo-Manipulation, 2020 (Original Photos: Northeast Leicester, August 2020)

My two most recent architectural meditations (entitled 'Look Again 1 & 2') both dealt with the moments of spontaneous revelation that often cause some habitually disregarded or over-familiar landmark to take on a sudden resonance, from which more considered thought narratives may subsequently flow. I've frequently reflected on this in recent times, coming to recognise that - however much I may try to cultivate or facilitate multiple strands of potential meaning within my work, the initial spark still comes from something experienced in the moment - out there in my immediate environment. My own instincts will never be those of the true Conceptualist, it seems, for - important though they may be, the ideas come second to the subject (a close second - but definitely still second).

Both of these recent instances featured overlooked examples of 'forgotten' Modernism hiding in plain, everyday sight, within the local landscape. As such, both provided obvious portals to a fairly standard hauntological reading - forging connections between a discredited set of aesthetic conventions, the societal assumptions they might have once represented, and - by extension, a soft philosophical/political meditation on the idea of 'lost futures' or misplaced utopias. Others have written far more eloquently on those themes than I could ever manage - and constructed accompanying artistic genres and aesthetic tropes, to boot. That's not too important here though, for it now seems that more specific or topical connections may have also emerged from my modest little deriviste explorations of urban territory, and by sheer coincidence.

I've made no secret of the fact that, whilst this slightly aimless exploration of the cities in which I live or visit, is a long-established habit of mine - they have ramped up significantly during the recent months of lockdown and general Covid-19 conditions. Indeed, my attraction to the two sites under discussion, was as a direct result of encountering them from an unfamiliar direction, or under particular conditions, whilst out on one of the numerous extended bike rides that characterised the lost summer of 2020, for me.

It's also no secret that the situation has been a little different for us here in Leicester, than for the rest of Britain - for a few weeks, at least. As has been widely reported, we gained the dubious honour of being the first British city to be subjected to stricter local lockdown restrictions - even as the rest of the country appeared to be enjoying a somewhat more relaxed situation throughout July and much of August. Reports of dramatically spiking (if ineptly recorded) incidence of infection here, were accompanied by darker hints that this may be partially a result of inadequate safety standards and otherwise substandard working conditions in many of Leicester's clothing factories. It's clearly dangerous to draw crude parallels between high infection statistics and the areas of highest economic deprivation, population density, or immigrant demographics, without proper, locally-informed analysis. However, in Leicester, as elsewhere, it does seem that at least some of those dots may join up. Further investigation - not least by The Guardian newspaper, has shed light upon some of the problematic working practices common amidst the 'grey' Fashion economy, that have long been Leicester's 'grubby little secret'. That the vast majority of the contracting and sub-contracting garment businesses active in the city (and particularly in East Leicester, where Covid-19 numbers have been highest) form the supply chain for the Boohoo stable of fashion brands (also locally-based), raised eyebrows yet higher.

The long-term damage which may have been inflicted on the economic and social fabric of Leicester by an extended (and continuing) lock-down, and the degree to which the abuses and conditions which may have fuelled the situation, will become evident in the fullness of time. Doubtless, should Boohoo seek to restore its share price and PR standing, by relocating its activities offshore (perhaps ducking adequate inspection/auditing of standards yet further) it will have a direct impact - not least on many of the city's most vulnerable families.

Of more selfish relevance to my own practice is the depiction of one of my own 'Look Again' subjects - namely, Cobden House, illustrating another investigative Guardian article on the matters above. As I mentioned in my post about the building, it currently houses a number of businesses - one of which it now transpires, is linked with the payment of below-minimum wages to an exploited workforce. Indeed, the paper has named it in a list of local companies at the heart of its investigations.

I guess it all goes to show that - for all that I might often feel like I'm simply pedalling around in my own, self-absorbed and slightly eccentric little art bubble, I can be stumbling upon a locus of significant events, without even knowing it. If the initial encounter remains an essential singularity at the centre of my practice - the subsequent network of connections and potential readings, radiates out in many, unpredictable directions.