Kensington Blues

Words

Kensington Blues is a photography project by Jeffrey Stockbridge focusing on the residents who live along Kensington Avenue in North Philadelphia. During the nineteenth century Kensington Avenue was a symbol of prosperity- nationally recognized as a leader in the textile industry.

Today, Kensington Avenue is infamous for poverty, drug abuse and prostitution. Drugs such as Heroin, Crack and Xanax are sold out in the open. Addicts sell clean needles for a dollar a piece and prostitution has become a social norm. With the El train roaring overhead, Kensington Ave is in a state of perpetual hustle. Working with a 4×5 camera, Jeffrey has deliberately chosen a slow photographic process in order to slow down the rapid speed of life as it happens along the Ave. His work asks: ‘How do people survive the neighborhood and themselves?’ Jeffrey explores this theme with photography and first-person narratives of his subjects via audio recordings and journal entries.

All images © Jeffrey Stockbridge

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