London Photo Gallery - Art Exhibitions & Special Events

A Place to Call Home: Poverty and Housing in London (November 2026)

Industrialist Charles Booth created a series of maps that coloured London's streets to highlight poverty and wealth in the late 19th century. His first map covered the east end and was released in 1889, with the underlying data from School Board visitors. Darker colours indicate poverty.

Complementing these maps are other items on post-war redevelopment, housing policy, eviction, and more.

The exhibition is located at the Senate House Library, which holds events regularly.

Centerprise was a bookshop and community centre based in Dalston that celebrated solidarity among the working classes.

These radical pamphlets promoted how London should be rebuilt after World War II, highlighting shelter as a vital human right and taking it away from private landlords.

Philanthropy and not government initiative spurred modern urban planning. American banker George Peabody used his wealth to build affordable homes across London. This rent book from the late 19th century not only recprded the financials, but also the tenants' occupation, background, and character.

Tenant organizations created these pamphlets highlighting housing rights. The Hampstead Tenant was a manual for private renters that documented overcrowding, landlord neglect, and more.

After the war, prefabricated council estates were touted as an innovative housing solution. But many were not well-built and became health hazards with damp and mould.

In the late 1970s, thousands of council homes were left empty as they await redevelopment while the community struggled to find housing. The Islington Squatters published comics to challenge council's decisions and demand these empty units be properly used.

Event Website