Photographs of places in the UK with "paradise" in the title

“Paradise is on the edge of an industrial estate just north of the M25. It’s also behind a Jobcentre in Manchester. By the bins.” What a difference a poetic opening line of a project caption can make! Oli Kellett sent this project in after the success of his 2011 project where he found street signs around the world that look like British words spelt wrong. Paradise is similarly genius: with the help of Martin McAllister Oli travelled the UK since 2010 photographing any road, street, lane or close that contained the word “paradise” in its title.

Unsurpirisngly, the photos are as far removed from a utopian, cloud-like paradise as you can get. Instead we are presented with stagnant business parks, flyovers, car parks and sleepy, grey towns not unlike the ones seen in the opening credits of the UK version of The Office. “But what about paradise? These names clearly aren’t a possessive land grab. Instead they’re clumsily trying to create an image,” state Oli and Martin. “The naming of these service access-roads and industrial parks is so incongruous it manages to be simultaneously prosaic and romantic. It’s a kind of naive enthusiasm trying to convince us of what surely everybody will realise isn’t true, like an overeager parent naming their child Winner. These names end up saying more about the namer than object.”

Have a gander, find your local paradise over here on their very well-built website.