A love letter to Walthamstow market, shot on film
- Text by Sana Badri
- Photography by Sana Badri
My parents and I moved to London when I was just two years old from Tunisia, and I’ve been here ever since. When I was little, I remember going to Walthamstow market all the time with my mum – I loved all the sights, flavours and interactions. You never knew who or what you were going to see there.
The local community in Walthamstow is made up of incredibly warm, hard-working people. So often, they don’t get time to take a step back and recognise the beauty they bring with them. The people at the market are just working hard to survive, each with their own complex stories, and they come together for a short time in this simple way to get their vegetables or clothes.
For people from marginalised communities, archiving the things that are important to us is essential. Our narratives are never as rigorously documented as white narratives – and often when they are documented, they are sensationalised.
I’m interested in exploring the idea of belonging, particularly how diaspora communities find belonging in different ways wherever they go, and markets are definitely a part of that. Aunty can haggle there the way she used to in Djerba, Uncles can sit around together at a friends stall without it being a ‘loitering’ issue. A market is such an important space where communities can act in ways that are reminiscent of home.
Stallholders say the market has changed a lot over the years. Gentrification of the surrounding area has reduced traffic flow to the market, and there are fewer people coming there to shop than before. These photos can hopefully act as an archive of the normalcy and beauty of Walthamstow market for whoever it might matter to in the future if we ever lose these important communal spaces.
Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
Latest on Huck
Clubbing is good for your health, according to neuroscientists
We Become One — A new documentary explores the positive effects that dance music and shared musical experiences can have on the human brain.
Written by: Zahra Onsori
In England’s rural north, skateboarding is femme
Zine scene — A new project from visual artist Juliet Klottrup, ‘Skate Like a Lass’, spotlights the FLINTA+ collectives who are redefining what it means to be a skater.
Written by: Zahra Onsori
Donald Trump says that “everything is computer” – does he have a point?
Huck’s March dispatch — As AI creeps increasingly into our daily lives and our attention spans are lost to social media content, newsletter columnist Emma Garland unpicks the US President’s eyebrow-raising turn of phrase at a White House car show.
Written by: Emma Garland
How the ’70s radicalised the landscape of photography
The ’70s Lens — Half a century ago, visionary photographers including Nan Goldin, Joel Meyerowitz and Larry Sultan pushed the envelope of what was possible in image-making, blurring the boundaries between high and low art. A new exhibition revisits the era.
Written by: Miss Rosen
The inner-city riding club serving Newcastle’s youth
Stepney Western — Harry Lawson’s new experimental documentary sets up a Western film in the English North East, by focusing on a stables that also functions as a charity for disadvantaged young people.
Written by: Isaac Muk
The British intimacy of ‘the afters’
Not Going Home — In 1998, photographer Mischa Haller travelled to nightclubs just as their doors were shutting and dancers streamed out onto the streets, capturing the country’s partying youth in the early morning haze.
Written by: Ella Glossop