Say what you will about Soho, but the red light district has cleaned up. Strip clubs, drinking dens and sex shops are now hipster cafés, tech start-ups and chain restaurants. The days of Madame Jojo’s, Blitz club night, and Kashpoint may be over, but thanks to a few, 90s hedonism is still being celebrated: from fashion to art and music, it’s not all doom and gloom.
Case in point: London Fashion Week. The change of scenery to Brewer Street’s Art Deco car park may have given the neighbourhood a creative refresh but it was Gareth Pugh’s patriotic homage via his ‘The Stars of Soho’ show, with its coin-covered disco troupe, which revived the tone of yesteryear, if only for one night.
Music wise, the ‘Save Soho’ campaign, backed by Benedict Cumberbatch and Stephen Fry, created to protect iconic music and performing arts venues, is trying to breathe new life into the ‘hood. Its pop up music club, ‘The Reservation’, a grassroots music venue, provides a roll call of up ‘n’ comers performing live every Friday night.
And on to the exploding art scene. The recently opened ‘Lights of Soho’ gallery was once a brothel, which today, commemorates the historic glow of Soho’s red lit alleyways. Neon works by the late Chris Bracey, Tracey Emin, Gavin Turk, Chris Levine and many more, are hung next to young and emerging artists. Artist Prem Sahib has taken over Soho’s Southard Reid, shutter boarding the gallery to reflect the closures in the area. Down on Dean Street, Blacks Members Club regularly opens its doors to non-members for exhibitions to promote the work of new artists, and just opened is Lucy Sparrows’ ‘Madame Roxy’s Erotic Emporium’. The felt porn shop may have serious undertones (a reaction against the sterilisation of Soho) but it’s fun, seedy and lewd… classic Soho.
