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Ameena Rojee - Crocus Valley
When you hear about the place "Croydon", what do you think of?
Is it grazing cattle?
Soft and sweet moments?
The most glorious sunsets and sunrises?
Warmth and romance?
Crocus Valley is an unexpected and romantic glimpse of London's most southern borough – its biggest by population. This cultural and generational patchwork quilt of a place is supposedly empty of such romance, scenes that are never depicted in the media or spoken about.
But this romance exists in Croydon, a place which has an ancient connection to wildness and the natural world that can be seen today both in its abundant green spaces and in the central urban sprawl.
Hop on the tram from East Croydon train station, one of the busiest in the country, to find big pink skies, lush rolling hills, and grazing cattle. Walk through it's various neighbourhoods and look to the place names for a hint of our ancient wildness: Norwood, Selhurst ("dwelling in a wood"), Thornton Heath, Broad Green, Waddon (“the hill where woad grows”).
The abundant nature and the not-so-hidden beauty doesn’t mean the very serious issues the borough faces don’t exist; however, like they do in all London boroughs, these extremes exist side-by-side.
Crocus Valley was published by RRB Photobooks in 2023 and features poetry from Croydon poet laureate Shaniqua Benjamin and cover artwork by local painter Bev Jones.
The book was launched August 2023 with two outdoor exhibitions and a mini series of events as part of Croydon’s London Borough of Culture programme.
BIO
I’m a photographer, writer, and educator who loves to tell stories about adventure, the outdoors, and our relationship with the natural world.
TO PURCHASE CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW
https://ameenarojee.co.uk/Crocus-Valley