On 30 July 2017 I visited the area around Grenfell Tower, almost 50 days after fire destroyed the building. Despite having read plenty about it at the time, I wasn't sure what to expect once I was actually there.


The sight of the tower turned out, of course, to be monumentally sad. A monolithic representation of what is wrong with the country.

I wanted to photograph the human side of its victims and that, for me, wasn't it.


Where I found this was with the memorials left near the site, each telling a small story about the person/people they were left for. I was moved by these tributes to the victims of this awful event, with hints as to their passions, job, age, and religion.


They also brought back some of the colour and life that had gone missing from the tower.


Some of these appear to be from caring strangers, others from those who knew the victims personally, with their significance a private one in a public place.














































© Michael Goldrei 2024