Your Body Of Work Thinks Back At You

I’ve been taking photos of benches for years. Sometimes on purpose because I find them intriguing and I have an thing for objects designed for people but without anybody using them, sometimes just because they were there next to my subject. Last year, looking at these photographs, I noticed something I didn’t know existed in my archive. Bench on a platform, 2026 I went back in time through my archive and checked more of my photos. I found that not only I had been fascinated by benches, which I knew, but what specifically hit me was how the benches were changing: armrests appearing mid-seat instead of at the ends; continuous long benches replaced by individual seat units separated by awkward gaps; subtle curves that made lying down uncomfortable without being obviously punitive; weird shapes that made them impractical to lay on. Hostile architecture, or anti-social street furniture, isn’t a new thing. It’s probably been around since the 70s. But it has become more and more common over…