David Bennett

LIP Central presents Connected: Disconnected

Connections was a subject explored by LIP Central in 2021, a time when many personal links had become fragmented and particularly precious, followed by an online group exhibition titled Life Goes On. In 2026 the group were invited to explore a variation on the original theme, along with its opposite, for this new exhibition. 

Connected describes being joined, linked or related, including physical objects attached to each other, ideas or stories that belong together, events linked chronologically, people related or bonded emotionally, and devices linked mechanically or electrically.

Disconnected involves a lack of any of these links, for any reason: breakage, separation, loss, isolation, and even a detachment in situations where connection was never intended.

Both may exist in various forms at the same time.

This exhibition presents the individual interpretations and responses of some 30 photographic artists, in a salon-style arrangement. The subjects include groups of individuals in expansive settings and varying conditions, alongside architecture, modern street fixtures, small life studies, personal items and experimental techniques. 

London Independent Photography (LIP) is a community of some 300 photographers.

LIP promotes personal vision and expression in photography. Members represent a wide range of backgrounds, each sharing the practice of looking and seeing, and forming a diverse community for the visually curious. 

Since its foundation in 1987, LIP has offered the opportunity for participants of all skill levels to informally show and discuss each other’s work and the wider photographic world at various satellite groups which meet in person around London or online. Some are dedicated to specific genres or practices. Events are held throughout the year, including a major annual exhibition, along with talks and workshops. A magazine is published three times annually.

The Central London group was founded in 2009 and has presented exhibitions regularly since 2012. The group meets each month in Bloomsbury, and attendees are encouraged to bring and show selections of their work, either in response to a suggested theme or from a personal project.