Case study - Brick Lane Flashcards
What is Brick Lane?
Street in the borough of Tower Hamlets
Where does Brick Lance run to?
Runs from Swanfield Street in Northern Bethnal Green, through Spitalfields to Whitechapel High Street in the South (Osborne Street).
What happened to Brick Lane in the 17th Century?
- Influx of French Huguenots who migrated from France
- Initially established weaving and tailoring
What happened to Brick Lane in the 19th-20th century?
Irish and Jewish Migrants (escape persecution in Russia and Europe 1880s) > Sandys Row Synagogue; Yiddish food; textiles industry (rag trade grew); 95% of Wentworth Street Jewish in 1900s
Brick Lane in the 20-21st century?
Migration from Bangladesh - Banglatown. Brick Lane Jamme Masjid converted from Hugenot church (1743 L’Eglise de l’Hôpital) > synagoue to Muslim mosque in 1976.
What is an film source for Brick Lane?
Brick Lane - Monica Ali (filmed 2007)
How does the film represent Brick Lane?
- Changing prosperity of Brick Lane over time
- Site of cultural diversity - Bangladeshi community
- (Features in Jack the Ripper documentaries)
What are the strength of using film?
Sense of place (emotional impressions/lived experiences)
What are weaknesses of using film?
Subjective (often stereotyped to sell); dramatised so may not reflect reality -sense of place is dependent on the storey being sold (e.g. crime dramas set in urban areas vs Poldark).
What is a form of poetry/liturature for Brick Lane?
Brick Lane - Monica Ali; Brick Lane - Sammy Brough; The brick lane I see - Sally Flood
How does the poetry/liturature represent Brick Lane?
- Place of change
- Gentrification
- Banglatown
- Up and coming/hopeful
Strengths of using poetry/liturature?
- Show sense of place
- Change over time
- Informal representations
Limitations of using poetry/liturature?
Biased (subjective/may be highly opinionated/ only perspective of the author); can represent just a snapshot in time
What is an art represetation for Brick Lane?
James; Fitzgerald; Stik
How does the art represent Brick Lane?
Site of cultural diversity - ‘Stik’; ethnically diverse
Overcrowded/lively - crowds of people and families
Site of both conflict and solidarity: dan James - Anti-Racist demonstration march vs skinheads at Hanbury St corner; stop and search
Curry houses - Fitzgerald - ‘City Spice’ ‘Balti House
What are the strengths of art?
More scope for individual interpretation; graffiti can provide a voice for the non-mainstream; sense of place from an individual (could show insider opinions well); can be used to make a place distinctive/unique and encourage regeneration (e.g. Kelpies sculptures, Falkland)
What are weaknesses of art ?
Limited perspective; often structured as a combination of real and imagined or romanticised (e.g. rural idyll in Turner’s paintings below) so don’t reflect reality; may be difficult to interpret
What are music representations for Brick Lane?
Dave ‘Verdansk’. Jools Holland ‘Brick Lane’
How does music represent Brick Lane?
Changing prosperity of Brick Lane over time - gentrification
‘My bro Brick Lane, we don’t know ‘bout Shoreditch
Rental, I never insured it, M25, gotta whip that calmly’
Jools Holland - celebrates Bangladeshi culture
Strengths of using music?
Sense of place (emotional impressions/lived experiences), change over time, emotice
Weakness of using music?
Subjective; can represent just a snapshot of time
