Harriet Mena Hill's Concrete Art Challenges Aylesbury Estate Stereotypes

Harriet Mena Hill, a South East London-based artist, has spent three decades in the area, which she remembers as historically working-class and impoverished. This context led to the construction of the Aylesbury Estate, one of Europe's largest social housing projects, built between 1963 and 1977. In 2018, Hill's arts education work brought her to the estate, where she encountered a community that contradicted its notorious reputation for drugs, violence, and intimidation. This experience prompted two major projects: 'The Aylesbury Fragments,' paintings on concrete rubble from the estate's ongoing regeneration, and 'Soft Concrete,' large felt portraits of the blocks. Hill collects concrete pieces directly from the site, ensuring they originate from the Aylesbury, and views her work as 'a project of memory and restitution.' The fragments, including rare pieces like 'Cornerstone' with ninety-degree angles, offer glimpses into the estate's past life. 'Soft Concrete' explores the domestic within brutalist design, a medium Hill adopted after experimenting with wet felting. Her work has traveled globally, and she shares her process with fellow artists, though she is cautious about Instagram due to past boundary crossings. Residents' reactions are mixed, with many more interested in her workshops than the artworks themselves. The article appears in Hi-Fructose Issue 79.