A new photography book titled "Broadway Market" by Francesco Ragazzi, published by Specola/Books, offers an intimate glimpse into the bustling life at 25 Broadway Market in East London. The project documents the daily rhythm of one of London's most iconic markets through an unprecedented year-long photographic observation.
Every Saturday morning at 7:30 AM, Jason arrives to wash the window of Organico, an organic grocery store located at 25 Broadway Market. As he works with his soapy brush, stroke after stroke, the glass gradually reveals the growing excitement of the awakening market: the first stalls open, vendors set up amid chatter, and the first customers begin to arrive. Some merely observe, others queue to grab the freshest products, while a few try on clothes, competing for space around the only mirror positioned in the center of this orchestrated chaos.
Between 2015 and 2016, Francesco Ragazzi captured more than fifty thousand images through the window of the grocery store where he worked, nestled in the heart of the market. Sometimes he pressed the shutter himself; other times, he let the camera act alone at regular intervals, always positioned in the same spot on the oil shelf. Through its unique modular and interactive design and meticulous editing from this vast collection of images, "Broadway Market" offers viewers a glimpse of the flow of life that swarms daily in front of the storefront.
The book serves as a tribute to the market as one of East London's pillars and one of its most striking metaphors: a key space that mirrors the soul and transformations of this legendary neighborhood over the years. Regular solitary visitors, curious couples, and local families all contribute to the Broadway Market spectacle that gradually unfolds before the shop.
In one of the texts accompanying the book, artist Tom Hunter traces the profound changes and inexorable gentrification of the Broadway Market area since the 1980s with nostalgic accents and fragments of memory. He recalls the transition from the glorious days of squats in abandoned four-story houses with large gardens and high ceilings, wild techno nights in old pubs, cheap beer and no bouncers, to today's transformed landscape.
Despite the dramatic changes, Hunter notes that a Saturday stroll through the market still brings the joy of encountering old friends: Uncool John at his stand selling old and new Hackney paintings, Conor and his books at Donlon, Barley at Fabrications transforming salvaged materials into beautiful clothing, and many others. "Broadway Market is still alive and vibrant," Hunter affirms, describing it as a unique place where countless people have found community and a true sense of belonging amid the neighborhood's constant transformations.
The market, with its exuberant character, reflects the magic of daily life in East London. Thanks to Ragazzi's discreet act of observation through the organic grocery store window, the book captures the hidden beauty in the singular small details that make Broadway Market what it is: a place where seemingly incompatible lives - residents and travelers, old-timers and newcomers - coexist in a unique and constantly evolving social fabric.
Cultural geographer Iain Sinclair writes in the book's introduction: "It's a dream of a dream of London." He's right - Broadway Market remains one of the most eloquent examples of cultural exchange and the weaving of identities that emerge from London, the very foundation on which the city builds its promises. It represents a tangible utopia of community and diversity, serving as a home for some and a rite of passage for others.
As writer and curator Devjani Saltzman suggests in her contribution to the book, we all observe from behind the window frame in our own silence, imagining the lives of countless strangers who pass by, intoxicated by the smell of coffee and freshly baked focaccia. The market, in its transience, silently testifies to what East London is, has been, and perhaps still will be.
The book features design by Massimo Melloni and includes texts by Andreas Philippopoulos-Mihalopoulos, Tom Hunter, Devjani Saltzman, and Iain Sinclair. The official launch took place on Wednesday, October 22 at Clair de Rouen in London, as part of PhotoMonth London 2025.
