SOMETHING ABOUT A CITY

Just before the book fair, a small, inconspicuous book fell into my hands. It is called Maj-Lis in London and has, as far as I can see, been published by its own publisher. Maj-Lis is the photographer Maj-Lis Andersen, who you can also read more about on her website www.majlisandersen.com

The book is a kind of autobiographical, poetic photo-essay about a different London and England than what you think of when you hear the names. I understand from the text that the author has lived for long periods in London and made the city her own in the painful way that you can only do when you live there, wanting nothing else, but still not being able to make it yours truly. Because it doesn't work.

“We lived in the Essex countryside, where I used to copy pictures in the shed in Bill's garden. Bill was a member of the local photography club. We lived in Chislehurst south of London and we lived in Notting Hill. We moved out. Madonna moved in.”

The entire text and images are a kind of wild and at the same time laid-back sliding into the margin, which precisely therefore opens the perspectives towards the centre. In the city and the story. The book leaves me with no peace; I read it over and over.

"Who wants my Tesco card after I'm gone?”

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/Björn Sandmarks Blog over “Maj-Lis in London” at Gothenburg’s Book fair 2013