I’ve lived in East London for 86 1/2 Years – interview with author Martin Usborne

Martin Usborne, writer and co-author of I’ve Lived in East London for 86 1/2 Years. Photograph: Eléonore de Bonneval

Photographer and writer Martin Usborne first met Joseph Markovitch, the subject of his new book I’ve Lived in East London for 86 ½ Years, while he was out walking.

“He always talked to everyone,” says Usborne. “He was very funny and unusual. I assumed he was drunk or alcoholic and realised he was not. I took his photograph, made a friendship and spent five years photographing him.”

The book is a portrait in images and words of Markovitch, an 86-year-old original East Ender who has lived in Hoxton all his life, leaving London only once – to go to the seaside with his mum.

Usborne himself has been living in East London for over 14 years and feels a real sense of belonging here. He wanted Joseph to “talk about the old East London and how it has changed”. But this was unsuccessful. Markovitch had his own agenda in mind. He wanted to discuss “Lady Gaga, Nicolas Cage and his favourite movies because he was fascinated by popular culture”.

Their relationship had a deep effect on Usborne, who reconsidered what it is to be old and what East London is all about. In I’ve Lived in East London for 86 ½ Years Usborne explores Markovitch’s life through a series of photographic portraits shot around the area, his voice resonating through selected quotes that comment on his long life and perception of the neighbourhood.

As readers, we too start engaging with him. We meet someone with a great sense of humour who is sensitive and touching and who is eager to embrace change in an ever-changing area. “A lot of young kids do graffiti around Hoxton… It’s nice. It adds a bit of colour, don’t you think?”

I’ve Lived in East London for 86 1/2 years is published by Hoxton Mini Press RRP: £12.95 or £45.00 for the signed Collector’s Edition (includes print) hoxtonminipress.com