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World renowned fashion photographer Nick Knight collaborates with American Express to create #MySecretCity, his first real-time photography exhibition hosted live from London on Twitter.
Leaving the studio and taking to the streets of the capital, Nick set out to capture photos of the hidden inspiration he sees in the places he passes every day, shared in real time via @AmexUK.
The exhibition uncovers the hidden beauty in these unexpected places - including city gardens and urban habitats, brutalist architecture and metropolitan playgrounds to help people realise the full potential of London.
Show all 15 1 /15A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Mount Street Gardens The exhibition comes as a study by American Express suggests that Brits are stuck on ‘Urban Autopilot’ when it comes to exploring their day to day surroundings, failing to take advantage of everything that’s on offer. The research revealed that when out and about in their nearest city, seven out of ten1 Brits are looking down, distracted by smart phones and tablets. Just one in five take the time to look at their surroundings.
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition St Pauls' Artist Studios, Talgarth Road “This set of artists’ studios that I pass everyday on the way to and from work, was built by Frederick Wheeler in 1890 and is where the wonderful Pre Raphaelite painter Edward Burne Jones, among others, painted. I have always loved the idea of a community of artists and this was my original motivation to start SHOWstudio.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Fountains at Waterloo “Wonderful pure brutalist architecture, bold and uncompromising. I love it!”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Trellick Tower “This wonderful building is testimony to the huge debate that rages on as to the embracing of new architectural styles in our society. I think it’s so important to make the new generation believe in the future, keep looking forward and build incredible buildings that will inspire the people of tomorrow.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Chiswick House “Designed by William Kent and completed in 1729, the building introduces Palladian style architecture and the concept of the English Landscape Garden style of "natural" gardening that revolutionised the laying out of gardens and estates. So here at Chiswick House, heritage is perfectly matched with a delightful place for family weekend walks in the garden.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition 55 Broadway “Halfway along the north and east facades of 55 Broadway are a matched pair of sculptures, Day and Night by Jacob Epstein. The modernism and nakedness of the sculptures caused controversy when they were first unveiled in the 1920s and I’m glad it survived the debate at the time as it’s so important to put our greatest artists’ work on public display.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Love Waterloo Sunset Nick Knight comments: “I am really excited to be involved in the first real-time exhibition of its kind, set in the city that gives me so much inspiration for my work. I have always been interested in the analogy of the city being like a musical symphony, moving at different tempos. The stillness and solitude of hidden gardens and green spaces contrasted with the architecture we live and work in gives you a different perspective on London.
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Telescopic View of St. Paul's “There's a telescope at the highest point in Richmond Park on King Henry's Mound, a Neolithic barrow, from which there is a protected view of St. Paul's Cathedral. A real fairy-tale view of London.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Wild Flowers “Over the last few years our local Council has cultivated areas of wild flowers which look so joyous and delicate, plus they attract a myriad of butterflies and brighten my day whenever I pass.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Under The Westway “The engineering and construction of this ‘freeway in the sky‘ is cathedral like in its beauty as it sweeps majestically over Notting Hill Gate, Ladbroke Grove and Paddington before landing its passengers deep in the heart of Edgware. I see the Westway as a beautiful testimony to the thousands of totally different people all sweeping in and out of the metropolis.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Horses under the Westway We get so stuck in our familiar ways around the city that we miss the sheer beauty and inspiration all around us, which is why I’m working with American Express to celebrate this wonderful city and help people see its hidden beauty.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Wilton Crescent II “Created by Thomas Cundy II in 1821, of all the crescents in London, to me, this is by far the most beautiful and delicate. SHOWstudio is housed in the Pantechnicon building round the corner, which was originally built so families in the great houses on Wilton Crescent had a place to store their summer art in the winter and their winter art in the summer.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Wilton Crescent I “Created by Thomas Cundy II in 1821, of all the crescents in London, to me, this is by far the most beautiful and delicate. SHOWstudio is housed in the Pantechnicon building round the corner, which was originally built so families in the great houses on Wilton Crescent had a place to store their summer art in the winter and their winter art in the summer.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition Train tracks at Old Oak Common Lane, Willesden I drive past this on my way to the photographic studio. It is one of the hills in London that people seldom recognise but from the top the view out towards London across all the train tracks is a beautiful, still evocation of the industry of our city. These lines of communication give me a real world visual of how I imagine the Internet.”
A hard day’s Knight: Photographer Nick Knight captures London in a one day real-time urban photography exhibition St Pauls Cathedral at night The end of the journey, St Paul’s, seen from the Tate Modern. Two of my favourite buildings, poetically linked.”
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