For three years, between January 2017 and December 2019, British photographer (b. 1984) walked through the lamp-lit and neon-filled streets of London’s Soho at night.
Jackson initially picked up a camera as a way to 鈥渆scape the frustrations of insomnia.鈥 The result is Sleepless in Soho, the photographer鈥檚 .
The images explore the juxtaposition between the Soho of today and the 鈥渇aded character鈥 of its past. Jackson鈥檚 works are increasingly meaningful at a time when the nightlife industry is under pressure.
The photobook reveals the complex and, at times, intense atmosphere of London鈥檚 best known entertainment district. Figures appear in front of neon signs. Lights flicker in steamed up glass. Faces peer through open windows.
As a London-based image-maker, Jackson focuses on life within cities, expressed through a rich visual language of colour and abstraction. The shots are almost painterly, reminiscent of Saul Leiter鈥檚 (1923-2013) New York works.
Sleepless in Soho combines text and visuals, and is accompanied by a poem by Sarah Tucker: 鈥淕uided on by the flickering of neon lights / I know well the hours filled with sleepers dreams / I search them peacefully as I journey through the nights.鈥
Sleepless in Soho is available to pre-order. Release date: 22 October. Find out more
All images 漏 Joshua K. Jackson
