Documenting the quirks of growing up British

Having recently graduated from a Photography degree at the London College of Communication, Lottie Bea Spencer is still holding onto what she calls “the frivolous nature of youth”.

In her project Nine O’Clock Horses, Spencer illustrates a primary coloured, bubblegum-popping aesthetic of British youth. Side by side with her portraits of dream-glazed young men and women are the bastions of UK tradition and culture: the fire engine red garage door, fish dinners, the egg and spoon we all valiantly competed with on sports days and the faded stick-on tattoos that never stuck around for that long.

“I guess I always hope to create work that makes people feel some sort of pleasure when they look at it. The latest project was a way of me celebrating Britishness and all the funny little quirks and traditions that quite often get overlooked or overshadowed," explains Spencer. “I also wanted to incorporate my interests in both art and fashion into the work and display them in a way, whereby they could interact and play with each other visually."

Merging still life and portrait photography, Spencer explores humour in a youth culture that can sometimes take itself too seriously, as a “subtle, spontaneous humour in the playful everyday”. Her project encapsulates her colourful memories of growing up in Leciester, her life in London and the relationships she’s held along the way.

Check out more of Lottie Bea Spencer's work here