"I was here", a photo series of The old Surrey Public Market, photographed in 2013, @ King George Blvd & 64th Ave, Surrey, BC
I did this series of photos of the old Surrey Public Market, dubbed one of the city's "most notorious eyesores", back in 2013- before it was finally torn down in 2017. Designed by Chandler/Kennedy Architecture in 1990, the Surrey Public Market was created to be the ultimate local market destination for the residents of Surrey and surrounding communities, but closed its doors due to leasehold disagreements in 1998, and was abandoned and doomed to decay. A once bustling festive atmosphere full of food vendors now only shows us vestiges of its former glory. It naturally became a refuge for the outcast and homeless, and they left their own imprint on the remains. Eventually, just as the vendors before, the squatters too were forced to move on, as the location has now become a developing ground for new condos, with only the concrete underground parking area being retained for the new structure. There is nothing new or special about this process, the rise and decline of developments, the gathering and scattering of the homeless, gentrification, the circle of life, etc. But it is healthy to realize that with every new step forward something is left behind, with every new idea we embrace an old one torn down, birth feeds off death. The inherent death in progress.
You can click on the photos to view and use the arrow keys to scroll.
