A Homage to Croydon

I moved to Manchester in 2017, ready to start a new life in a city where I would be studying and without much of a consideration of the city I was leaving behind, despite the fact that it would now be 200-odd miles away.

I wouldn't say that it occurred instantly, but it probably wasn't far off either. It was someone of a surprise to me, too, because I had never given much thought to where I had come from and how it had shaped me. But, without a doubt, the homesick feeling soon came upon me.

As a kid, I lived in a few different towns, all roughly around the same area, and I think that contributed to not feeling particularly tied down to one specific geographic location. It wasn't something that bothered me, and I certainly didn't feel or notice a lack of belonging, because I felt as though "home" was best described by the community around you - your family and friends, namely - than it was the streets that you lived on.

Fast forward to 2021, I'm still living in Manchester and I whole-heartedly feel as though this city is my new home. Not to replace my "old" home, but a second home, as such. The weird thing is that, since moving away, I've developed a stronger connection to my "old" home, or the nearest large town/borough to it.

Croydon is the borough of London in which I came of age. It's the place in which I studied, the place in which I grew professionally and personally, and the place that I probably know best. Despite the amount it's changed in the mere three years that I've been away, it's the place that I feel most at home.

In recent years, since I've moved away, I've been increasingly interested in the way in which a person's environment, and the people and places that they engage with, can influence their person, their ideologies and their craft. How do the places someone chooses to spend their time attribute to their characteristics and personal development?

As I said previously, a place for me is made up more by the people than it is the streets that adorn it. I still love the way that the light hits Church Street as the sun goes down, and the way that the clouds surround the 50p building in the afternoon, don't get me wrong, but there's something more that I love about the people that come out of Croydon and the passion, the determination, the drive that characterises them.

In 2019, I had an idea to create a body of work that encapsulates everything that I love about Croydon and the people of Croydon. I reached out to six individuals who I believed truly captured the spirit that Croydon instils and asked them to speak to me about themselves and their relationship with the borough.

This project is a homage to the place that I came of age, the place that I consider home. It's a homage to the sights, the sounds and the people.

It's an ongoing project, mainly because I'll never have enough time to capture the stories of everyone who has made Croydon my home, or who has shown the spirit of Croydon so clearly within what they do, but allow me to introduce you to just some of the characters in this series.

The next phase of the project is due to be released later on in 2021, with six more amazing Croydonians set to share their stories. I hope that you will join me in celebrating the people that make Croydon the place that it is and keep up to date with the stories through my YouTube, Instagram or website.