This series of images of urban environments began in South Africa at a vast complex of market trading at Warwick Junction in Durban. From a table of toothpaste and oranges, to an established tribal doctor with a lock-up shop, to a cow’s head cooker in a food court: all these represent examples of the only path to establishing a business in many countries. Such markets need responsive management structures that involve traders, which is seldom there, and often they are seen as colourful and dangerously romantic places by the main economy. The reality for a large proportion of the world is an extremely difficult struggle to make the transition from the informal.

At night the pictures suggest something of the harsh routine required to set up working conditions for daily trading. Dennis Gilbert describes the territory and architectural space with careful attention, using a large format digital camera.

[In the case of the Warwick images, half the profit from print sales is returned to the traders’ organisation].

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