A familiar symbol in a changing city
We’re pleased to welcome Xavier Greenidge to Underline as our latest contributor.
Xavier is a 21-year-old self-taught photographer from South East London, working mainly across street and fashion photography. Growing up in the area has shaped the way he photographs the city, focusing on the people around him and the places he knows.
His first project for Underline, The Dilapidated Capitol, takes one of London’s most recognisable objects — the red telephone box — and places it against the city that now surrounds it.
Red buses, black cabs and telephone boxes have helped create an image of London repeated through film, music and photography for decades. But while the telephone box remains instantly recognisable, its original purpose has largely disappeared.
Xavier uses that contrast to look at a city that has changed around these familiar landmarks. His photographs also touch on London’s inequality, where areas of significant poverty can sit minutes from some of its wealthiest streets. Rather than explaining that divide, he lets the locations and photographs speak for themselves.
The Dilapidated Capitol will be published on Underline on 16th October.
