Positive 12: beyond listed buildings

Brixton Market. London. Nov. 08.

Brixton Market has recently received a grade II listing. The BD article on the subject notes the then Culture Secretary, Ben Bradshaw's spokesperson as saying:

"The secretary of state recognises that none of the three Brixton markets could be said to have sufficient special architectural interest to merit listing,"

but...

"The Brixton markets are the most architectural manifestation of the post-war Caribbean presence in Brixton and given the significance of black history to post-war Britain this establishes some clear claims to historic interest… The [minister] considers that all three Brixton Markets embody special historical and cultural value."

Firstly this is a great victory for black cultural heritage, and a worthy piece of campaigning by Friends of Brixton Market. To me, however, it raises some very interesting issues about the listing of historic buildings.

In this case it seems that it is not the architecture of the building that is being protected, which is Bradshaw opines not of "sufficient architectural interest". Instead it is the atmosphere, of the market: that is to say the character of the place and its social histories. It is inspiration for Eddie Grant, the site of infamous riots, where you pick up your yams or boutique pizzas. This raises interesting questions for how one would approach development of the market, as the developers who bought it in 2007 may well do. Would they be required by English Heritage to retain any of the architecture of the market? The stall dimensions, the size of the arcades, the character of the eclectic signage? Or perhaps those characteristics which need to be retained are not all physical, and in fact are all cultural and socialogical: the volume and genre of music, the attitude of friendly meat vendors, the plethora of peripheral hairdressers.

I think that this could spark an interesting project dealing with the constraints of an ephemerally defined listing. Perhaps the renovated market would look entirely different, but you'd get a sense of deja-vu.