In the late 1990s as a graduate from art school Ewen Spencer began making pictures for ‘Sleazenation Magazine’. The images were made in black and white and were immensely candid, describing young people that liked to go clubbing, what they actually looked like, what people in the provinces who desired the decadent lifestyle of the urban cool could eventually look like and for the international reader in the fashion capitals of Paris, Milan and Rome it kept them wondering what on earth was going on. London was at the epicentre of a cultural boom. These pictures aren’t about Teds, Skinheads, Northern Soul, Acid House or Jungle and Garage, they’re not about Nu Metal or South London blackout clubs… but they are all here alongside high street carpet clubs because, as per Spencer’s words “here in the UK we know how to throw a party, we work hard and play hard, it’s grace under pressure, street style into high fashion”. Featuring previously unseen photographs, While you Were Sleeping is a rich and comprehensive visual document of ’90s nightlife and subculture and grants special access to an underground world, providing genuine insights of one of the most memorable era for British fashion, music and youth culture.
Ewen Spencer (b. 1971) began shooting for visually driven style magazines, such as Sleazenation and The Face, with an emphasis on youth culture. He is one of the most crucial documentors of British youth culture and has devoted the best part of his career training his lens on the nation’s young people. Spencer has published four previous books and self-published a biannual photo-zine called Guapamente focusing on global youth subcultures visiting Naples, Marseille, Miami and London. Ewen’s images have been published in prestigious magazines like Arena HOMME+, Vogue Hommes, Interview and V Magazine.
