77 Pottery Lane, Holland Park, W11

In 1966, David Hemmings established the archetype of the fashion photographer as superstar in Michelangelo Antonioni's iconic Blowup.

77 Pottery Lane, next to the currently closed Earl of Zetland pub, was the exterior of the photographic studio where he snapped away at his blank-eyed models with a mixture of seduction and contempt. Nearby 49 Princes Place was the studio of Vogue photographer John Cowans, who acted as advisor on Blowup, which was used as the studio interior.

Trivia: the name Pottery Lane reflects the area’s history. In the 19th century this was an area of potteries and brickfields, and these, now very desirable, properties were among the poorest housing in London. Just to the north, on Walmer Road opposite Avondale Park, stands one of the few remaining bottle kilns (as in ‘bottle shaped’), where the pottery was fired.

Blowup (1966, dir: Michelangelo Antonioni)