Brick Lane Market

This article was part of a digital recording project I've participated in with other students from the University of Westminster, in partnership with the Museum of London

27 June 2013

‘You can spread your soul over a paddy field, you can whisper to a mango tree, you can feel the earth between your toes and know that this is the place, the place where it begins and ends.’

Monica Ali, Brick Lane (2004)

This quotation from Bangladeshi author Monica Ali, to my mind, perfectly epitomises the multicultural mood of Bricklane, its nearby alleys, hues, smells and noises. Formerly established as a farmer’s market in the seventeenth century, the marketplace has been transformed by successive waves of Bangladeshi immigrants. As many Londoners would tell you, almost anything can be found on Bricklane, from antiques, vintage records and clothes to a wide range of international cuisine. Fancied by art students and bargain hunters, it is renowned for its street artworks by Banksy and D*Face.

                                    

Bricklane Market runs every Sunday from 9 am to 5 pm. It is divided in several sections such as the Sunday UpMarket, the Backyard and the Vintage Market, the Tea Rooms and the Boiler House Food Hall. We mostly stayed on the main street but allowed ourselves to enter some of these arcades like the Backyard Market and the Food Hall, now operating as showcases for emergent designers and organic food tasting.

The element which struck Clarisa and I was the huge size of the market, which partly accounts for the length of our recording. When we got to the Hanbury Street crossing, we realised that the northern end of the street was invaded with stalls and covered warehouses converted into halls.

   

We decided to go at the busiest moment of the day, that is, lunchtime. Bricklane Market was decidedly more diverse in terms of customers; most of them were tourists, notably from French, Hispanic and Asian origins. Despite its bustle, I had the feeling that it was quieter than the Flower Market: to attract customers, stallholders would directly come towards you and value face-to-face exchange rather than shout to offer their best deals.

The main difficulty we experienced was to capture a full conversation. We did not wish to stand too close to customers for fear of appearing intrusive. When we approached stalls, sellers thought we wanted to purchase some goods. They gave us strange looks while we shook our heads in refusal. Still, I really appreciated this silent mode of communication, as we had to express where we wanted to go by signs, something that completely contrasted with the agitation of the street.

 

13 August 2013

‘Cherry, cherry!’ yells one of the fruit and veg stallholders at the crossing of Bethnal Green Road and Shoreditch High Street.

                                        

We started our journey at 1.30 where many bike riders come to a halt to enjoy the atmosphere of Brick Lane market, its display and products. The Shoreditch part is by far one of the strangest marketplaces we have ever experienced, but in a way, it perfectly embodies the eccentric mood of London. On Bethnal Green Road, two car parks have been converted into a series of stalls presenting anything you can possibly find in the supermarket at discount prices: toiletries, batteries, cooking devices or stationary. We even spotted bike wheels and coffee beans sacks waiting to be purchased.

                                                   

A variety of musical styles was registered, either to keep sellers company or performed by street bands: early fifties rock’n’roll, contemporary RnB, drum’n’bass and folk. The cosmopolitan dimension was well represented as you had the impression that countries from all continents had gathered on this Sunday afternoon to produce a mosaic of accents and languages. Japanese, Bangladeshi or Afghan sellers would greet you with a smile to ask you how you were. A Spanish man approached a cook serving empanadas in his native language, but she replied that unfortunately, she was Italian. It was amusing to observe French people and detect their nationality from the start, just by looking at their clothes. 
                                          

As we elbowed our way through the main road, it was so crowded that sometimes we could barely move. Around the Backyard Market, we noticed a couple of stalls we hadn’t seen before, such as an artist cutting your face’s silhouette on paper in the Victorian style. Many customers were trying on vintage cameras. Once more, it was loud and busy. As a whole, the audience seemed more relaxed and vibrant than in other markets we have visited.

Yep, Brick Lane is definitely one of the most diverse places of London in terms of population, cuisine and goods.