Tales of Brick and Mortar is an ongoing project of photographs and interviews that highlight the social, cultural and architectural significance of traders in Yarra. Building connections and relationships with customers across generations, traders form and shape a sense of community within (and beyond) a local area, while also witnessing their streets and suburbs changing through their shopwindow. 
 
Located in Gertrude St, Fitzroy, the trader in this series of photographs, Harry Evans & Sons, is a 5th generation billiard, pool and snooker table manufacturer. Shops and traders like them are seen as essential contributors to an area’s historical narrative and social fabric. There’s a feeling that they will be around forever, but consumer behaviour has changed over the years, leaving established local businesses like these vulnerable. If they close, they’re gone – and a key piece of that community disappears. 

View this work at Fitzroy Library, opening hours below:

Monday: 10am to 6pm
Tuesday: 10am to 8pm
Wednesday: 10am to 8pm
Thursday: 10am to 8pm
Friday: 10am to 6pm
Saturday: 10am to 4pm
Sunday: 2pm to 5pm