Layers upon layers upon layers ...
Sunny's Grocery in Ashfield Sydney.
Began in 1885 in Sydney boom-time as the grand Centennial House.
The area then was mostly very anglo-celtic (after "gaining" the land from the indigenous Eora people).
Then Ashfield evolved through wave after wave of immigration - by 1986 46% of the population had been born overseas - firstly southern European (mostly italian) and most recently* Asian cultures from many countries.
All left their mark on the corner shops.
The design tells us that this building may have been a pub.
The walls tell us it has had multiple purposes in recent times.
The shop windows tell us that people living around here are of Chinese/Asian origin and they ring home often.
And the upstairs window tells us a baby lives there!
But its primary reason for being there, as always through its life, is as a local hub.
*An ironic footnote:
The wealthy anglo-celtic boom-time families in Ashfield actually included one Chinese family. The family head, Quong Tart, was a respected and admired Sydney figure and his legacy remained - even through the years of the infamous "White Australian Policy".
Now the strong Asian population has brought it full circle.
