In Shutting up Shop, John Londei did realise the Nation of Shopkeepers theme. In images that are part Emmet Gowin, part Bert Teunissen, Londei recorded the owners of Britain's declining number of independently owned small shops, most of which have now closed.This is what it says at his NPG show.
In 1972, photographer John Londei started taking pictures of small independent shops the length and breadth of Britain. Often family-run businesses, well-established in their local communities, Londei strove to capture the timeworn presence of these already anachronistic businesses the butchers and bakers, button makers, cobblers, fishmongers and chemists of our high streets. Over a fifteen-year period, he photographed 60 shops. In 2004, when he retraced his steps and revisited the shops he'd photographed, he found that only seven of the 60 were still in business. His subsequent book of the series, Shutting Up Shop is a fitting tribute to Britain's independent retailers.
Book available here.
