Issue 8 / Summer 2016 PUMP IT UP SUMMER FUN EL VERGEL The council’s new leisure The Elephant bursts The best in Latin centre proves a big hit. into life with a host of American and THIS And now there’s free free events and festivals Mediterranean food swim and gym for locals this summer served fresh at this ISSUE family favourite THE ELEPHANT 1 Hannah Maule-ffinch Sophie Hinds and Holly photo: Cobham-Weekes, Cover THIS IS THE ELEPHANT This is the Elephant. And this is the Elephant Magazine. he Elephant Magazine is the publication dedicated to all things Elephant and Castle. We want to celebrate all that Tis fabulous about our neighbourhood and our community. We want to look back with fondness on the area’s past and look forward with optimism to the future. The Elephant is changing and the Elephant Magazine will be following every step of the way. The Elephant Magazine is published by Southwark Council. We welcome your ideas, comments and contributions, so please get in touch. Editor: Richard Wells / Additional copy: Nikki Spencer / Main photography: Hannah Maule-ffinch / Designed by Westco Design and printed by Swiss Post / Enquiries: [email protected] 2 THE ELEPHANT Photography from left to right: East Street market sign; market trader, Strata; elephant statue; Metropolitan Tabernacle; Elephant and Castles band; musician; historic East Street; Jamyang food; LCC exhibition; Ilaria Mezzogorii; Cuming collection vase; market trader and produce; People’s Bureau; Rockingham estate; City Hunt; Cinema Museum; Elefest; Metro Central Heights; Baldwins; Imperial War Museum; LCC paint pots; Reg and Jean Brown. THE ELEPHANT 3 THE LOW-DOWN ON THE LOW LINE A new street beneath the railway line in Elephant and Castle is set to become a creative hub for the whole borough. Up to one hundred burgeoning artists, But providing studio space is only part of home to the public space, with the Sidecar designer-makers and creative start-ups are the plan. Spare Street also includes public Coffee bar downstairs. Upstairs, in the due to move into Spare Street, the new space, with a coffee bar and gallery, and hot-desk area, there are traces of Elephant permanent home of local arts organisation an extensive programme of talks and events and Castle’s past, including 1970s signage Hotel Elephant. is planned. reclaimed from the doctor’s surgery on the Heygate estate (where Hotel Elephant was Spare Street is a new street that has been Reuben explains “Spare Street is very based for a while) along with signs from the created from a series of refurbished railway much about nurturing talent, so we’ll help bakery and the old Giraffe pub. arches (between Steedman Street and and support young people and provide Hampton Street) just off Walworth Road. a springboard for their careers through “We thought it would be good to have our Creative Enterprise Programme which them here” says Reuben “for continuity.” The project has received funding from includes talks, networking events, skills Meanwhile, large neon letters taken from the council and The Mayor of London’s workshops, mentoring sessions and new the former London Park Hotel (now the Regeneration Fund. It represents the first commissions for emerging artists.” site of the Highpoint development) spell phase of a joint council and Network out ‘HOTEL’ over the arches at the front Rail plan to refurbish underused railway Spare Street officially opened in June and of the building. arches as part of a ‘Low Line’ project, the first of many artists and creatives are loosely based on the famous High Line already starting to move in. “The name ‘Hotel Elephant’ came from in New York. the title of an exhibition I did at the Morley “We’ll have everyone from fine artists to Gallery and it just stuck” explains Reuben, “We decided to name it Spare Street after jewellery makers and graphic designers” who has lived and worked in the area for the early 20th century artist, Austin Osman says co-director and Camberwell graduate, over 30 years. He set up Hotel Elephant as Spare, who lived and worked in the area” Emily Woodhouse. “We’ll make sure that a not-for-profit company in 2009, with the explains Hotel Elephant director and local there’s a good mix so they can bounce aim of providing much needed studio and artist, Reuben Powell. ideas around and complement each other.” exhibition space in Southwark. Emily joined in 2011 and, over the years, they’ve had “At only 17 years of age, Spare had his “What’s also great about Spare Street is temporary premises all over Elephant and work accepted for the Royal Academy that it’s very flexible” she adds. “There’s Castle but this is their first permanent home. Summer Exhibition in 1904. So it’s fitting hot-desk space and individual and open- that our project, Spare Street, is all about plan workspaces alongside growth space “We’re delighted, as it enables us to build encouraging young talent” says Reuben. for expanding creative businesses. Also, on the success of our previous projects. “So many young people come to study rather than being hidden away, alone in Our mission is to establish Spare Street creative subjects at London College of a studio somewhere, these artists make up as a destination which celebrates and Communication and we want them to one whole street, with a café and public encourages creative enterprise and be able to stay on in the area and work exhibition space that anyone can visit. All of artistic production in Southwark” says here. Finding affordable studio space is which will help to raise their profile.” Reuben, proudly. notoriously hard so this will make a huge difference.” To make the most of the space, the original “It feels wonderful” says Emily “I think it’s mezzanines have been extended to run still sinking in that, after years of moving, we the full length of the arches. The first arch is don’t have to move anymore” she smiles. 4 THE ELEPHANT Hotel Elephant Arches 1-5, Spare Street, London SE17 3EP www.hotelephant.co.uk THE ELEPHANT 5 THERE WERE TIMES WHEN I GOT THE JITTERS BUT I COULDN’T THINK OF ANYTHING ELSE I’D RATHER DO, SO I JUST KEPT GOING. 6 THE ELEPHANT GOING INTO ORBIT Hidden away in railway arches just off Walworth Road, Orbit Beers combines owner Robert Middleton’s passion for craft beer with his lifelong love of indie music. It’s even had the thumbs up from cult American band the Pixies. obert Middleton, of Orbit Beers, “We put in a new floor and drainage, Every Saturday during the summer they admits that he knew very little about juiced up the electrics and improved the have ‘Tap Room’ days so people can see Rbrewing until four years ago when water flow as we need a lot of water to the brewery, meet the team and either drink he embarked on a road trip around his make beer” Robert explains. in or take away. native Scotland in his VW camper van after chucking in his job in the city. In May 2014, Robert hired Mario as head “It makes the brewery a bit of a community brewer and they made their first beer a hub” says Robert. “Local people really “I’d worked for 26 years in the pensions few months later. Assistant brewer, Robbie, enjoy it.” industry and I couldn’t stand the excitement joined in October that same year. a minute longer” the 53-year-old says, Once a month, they create a bigger event, with his tongue firmly in his cheek. “I had “It’s very much a team effort” says Robert, playing a selection of vinyl, provided by no idea what I wanted to do but I knew I adding “it was scary at first.” Rat Records in Camberwell, and have a never wanted to see an office again.” food van. “London is a crowded market with more “I was looking to give the trip a purpose than 75 craft breweries but the European “It’s a lovely laidback atmosphere and a bit and someone I got chatting to in a bar styles of beer we do are a bit different. We different from just going to a bar” he adds. suggested I tour around all the craft have grown slowly but steadily and have breweries in Scotland, so I did. Until I drank had lots of warm and positive feedback Perhaps not surprisingly, music is always beer in Scotland I wasn’t a beer aficionado from customers.” playing while the trio work, although they at all - I used to drink Stella and didn’t really all have quite different tastes. “For Robbie think about it - but the independent, craft Orbit’s tag line is “Hi-Fidelity Brewing” it’s hip hop, Mario likes left-field jazz and beers tasted so good. As I learned more and Robert’s love of music is reflected for me it’s indie. Whoever gets in first gets about the industry and got to understand everywhere. Beers have names such as to play DJ.” more about beer, I realised that this was Nico (after the Velvet Underground singer) what I wanted to do.” and Peel (after DJ John Peel) and their Earlier this year, Orbit was asked to brew a limited edition “White Label” beers are one-off beer for an exhibition in Greenwich On his return to London he set about named after the new releases that used to by legendary art director Vaughan Oliver, making it happen. be sent to DJs and radio stations.