In Circulation: An Exchange of Memories

'In Circulation' is a documentary photography project by Siarhei Yazlavetski exploring Portobello Road Market as a place where objects, people, and cultures are constantly in motion. Beyond its role as one of London’s best-known antique markets, Portobello is approached as a living archive where histories are exchanged alongside everyday goods. Through photographs of traders, visitors, antiques, gestures, and fleeting encounters, the project reflects on how value is continually created, transformed, and passed from one person to another.

Alongside the photographs, the exhibition invites traders and visitors to share a personal memory of Portobello Road Market—perhaps an object once bought or sold, a chance encounter, or a moment that has remained vivid over the years. The invitation reflects the central idea of the project: while markets keep objects alive through exchange, memories remain alive through being shared. Together, these contributions invite visitors to get to know Portobello not only through the things that pass through it, but through the stories they carry with them.

Siarhei Yazlavetski is a Belarusian-born photographer and visual artist based in London whose practice explores memory, identity, and place through documentary observation and poetic interpretation. Working primarily with analogue photography, he approaches the camera not simply as a tool for documenting reality but as a means of revealing the connections between subjects.

The exhibition will be open daily from 10 am - 6 pm. A PV will take place on 24 July from 5 pm.