Behind the Blue Doors is a new photography exhibition by Jim Grover, the award-winning south London social documentary photographer. It reveals the fascinating story of Trinity Homes, an almshouse in the heart of Brixton which was endowed in 1824 and which continues to offer accommodation, for those in need, 200 years later. This is the first time a documentary photographer has documented an almshouse, its residents and their stories, and its history.The story is in three parts and is full of revelations. One part reveals how Trinity Asylum, as it was then called, came to be, and the two key characters behind its early years who, hitherto, have been unrecognised as important Brixton figures in the early nineteenth century. One part reveals how this almshouse ‘for pious aged women’ operated in the nineteenth century, including what it took to become an ‘Inmate’, its rules and regulations, and the life of ‘The Superintendent’. And one part reveals the inspiring stories of some of the current 17 residents, two hundred years on, for whom age is no barrier to living a full life.

The exhibition to celebrate the almshouse’s bicentenary in 2024 includes over 50 photographs and accompanying narrative that bring to life the current residents, their life stories and their homes, as well as documents, prints and portraits from the nineteenth century that shed light on the almshouse’s first 100 years.

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The exhibition is being staged in the exhibition gallery in the newly-opened Lambeth Archives in Brixton (16 Brixton Hill, London, SW2 1ET) from April 19th - June 1st 2024. Admission is free. Opening hours: Mondays 1-8pm; Tuesdays and Thursdays 10-6pm; Wednesdays Closed; Fridays 10-3pm; Saturdays 9-1pm and 2-5pm.