Gina Soden

At the heart of Gina Soden’s photography is a preoccupation with abandoned structures and locations. Based in London, she travels widely to undisclosed sites throughout Europe and explores the boundaries of beauty, decay, nostalgia and neglect. The genesis of each piece is often the unique architectural character of each location, heightened by their painfully slow transformation after years of abandonment.

Soden’s approach is lyrical and directs the viewer to explore the concepts of time and memory. The compositions feature derelict asylums, long since closed schools, ex-military compounds and famous city power stations in various stages of decay. The results are striking and poignant, at once both edgy in their contemporary aesthetic and nostalgic in their ruinous beauty.

The work is underscored by the potential controversy of gaining unlicensed access to the out of bounds areas. Every image is a product of a journey, referring both to the physical demands of gaining entry and to the passing of time which is evident in the abandoned locations.

Soden won UK Artist of The Year and Photographer of the Year in the Rise Art Prize 2018 and has produced commissions for the Soho House collections internationally, as well as the Hoxton Hotel Paris and The Ned hotel and members club, London.