Portraits & Stories of Rottingdean, Saltdean and Ovingdean
Their faces. Their words. Their lives. Preserved.
A generation of people carry memories that stretch from wartime Britain through decades of social and cultural change. They remember the village as it was — the work, the families, the landmarks, the losses. Those stories are rarely recorded. And each year, more of them disappear.
LightKeep is a portrait and oral history project documenting the lives of older residents in Rottingdean and the surrounding villages. Through high-resolution black-and-white portraits, filmed interviews and written records, it creates a lasting archive of lives that shaped this place — and preserves them while there is still time.
Each subject is presented through their definitive portrait, a companion photograph, a filmed interview and a written account of their life. Together the portraits form a tapestry — of an era, of a community, of a place. The project will culminate in a public exhibition, a printed catalogue, and a permanent online archive freely accessible to residents, families, schools and researchers
LightKeep is forming now.
Seeking funding, venues and participants. If you have a story to tell — or know someone who does — we want to hear from you.
“They sent me away to the country… they weren’t very kind to me.’
95-year old Janet created the Kipling figurine that sits in Kipling’s Historic House today.
LightKeep is looking for its next subjects.
Are you older, and would you like to share some of your life story? Have you lived in Rottingdean, Saltdean or Ovingdean — or do you know someone who has?
Do you run a gallery, a community space, a library? Do you work in arts funding or local heritage? Do you know a 90-year-old who remembers the village before it changed?
We want to hear from you. Every conversation starts the same way — with a smile and the same question: so tell me, who are you?