Unit 38 X Goldsmiths

Seven Sisters Market / Unit 38
“Little Sisters Market”
Little Sisters Market was a collaborative, live project between Goldsmiths Design and Unit 38 - a radical architecture group working with the Latin American community in Tottenham, London.

The Community Plan at Seven Sisters Market and the Ward Corner Community Benefit Society have been in a 20-year struggle against the demolition of Wards Corner the Indoor Market to build luxury flats. Seven Sisters Market, also known as the Latin Village, is a significant, cultural hub for the Latin American community in London, after the demolition of the other one in Elephant and Castle. The community found inside the market is diverse, and represents over 20 nationalities, 60 businesses and provides around 150 jobs.

This project aimed to find ways to reinvigorate the community and propose speculative ideas for the opening and to help sustain the temporary market, before the full refurbishment of the indoor market.

This project required us to listen to the community we were entering into and engage with the past and future history of a cultural hub that was not our own, and respectfully navigate the complexities of the space. Through a series of interviews, photo research and archive research, we learned this space was not just a market, but a vital support centre for the local community in Tottenham, as well
as migrant communities across London.

As a speculative proposal, we designed a community cookbook centring around the venders in the market and their personal stories concerning their gastronomy from their respective countries. Each vender is allocated a four page spread, exploring who they are, what the market means to them and a favourite recipe of theirs that can also be found in the market and cooked with ingredients you can purchase from the market stalls. We hoped the idea would make the significance of the market evident to people who had no prior knowledge to the space, and attract potential cliental and more venders to the space. We wanted to produce an outcome that would be deeply personal and support the community.
It was a privilege to be a part of this and we hope to return to the market soon.