Tesco ('Tesco' is part of the English Heritage Project, in the group show 'Stratford Everyday',
from 25 July - 8 Aug at Theatre Royal Stratford East)
The project started from the new opening of the chain store, Tesco, in the neighborhood I live.
As an artist living in Stratford, I always go to local grocery stores to buy everyday essentials.
However, after the opening of new Tesco express, it clearly changed the atmosphere and
created the tension among the local stores. People started to change the place where they go
shopping, and the local shops started to worry about the future. In 21st century where capitalism
ruling the world, it becomes more and more difficult for independent shops to survive under
the pressure of big, chain enterprises.
In the project, I want to record the special culture of local grocery stores in the neighborhood
Stratford, where I live. Influenced by the style of German Photographers Bernd and Hilla Becher,
I documented the local grocery stores, which all have similar appearances. By repetition, I want
people to notice those local shops where they usually ignored.