Published by Loose Joints in April 2019, *Congregation* is Sophie Green’s photobook on Southwark’s Aladura Spiritualist African churches and congregations: 104 pages with 30 colour and 25 duotone plates, bound as a hardcover with an embossed silk cover, 17.5 × 22.5 cm. The book is out of print, with a final handful of publisher’s reserve stock remaining.

Aladura is a denomination of Christianity predominantly practised by Yoruba Nigerians, and the publisher describes it as having become a ubiquitous part of London life over the last 40 years, particularly in Southwark, which the publisher describes as having the highest concentration of African churches outside the continent. Green photographs communities often referred to as “white garment” churches, gathering each weekend for Sunday service. These services are spoken in Yoruba and form a key social meeting point and place of cultural solidarity between African Londoners.

The book also asks how individuals find collective identity and power within subcultures, and how cultural practice is assimilated into modern global contexts: traditional dress, food and customs sit against modern technology and fashion, while devotional interiors colourfully fill the hidden, often industrial spaces the churches inhabit. Green engages directly with individuals through collaborative, posed portrait sessions and photographic workshops, which the publisher frames as empowering and engaging members of each congregation and their faith, highlighting the performance of identity and communality that underpins religious practice.

The book was launched on 25 April 2019 at Hannah Barry Gallery in Peckham, London, and has been covered by outlets including the Guardian, Time, Creative Review, Libération, i-D, the British Journal of Photography, Wallpaper, the Face, Huck Magazine, Twin Magazine and INDIE Magazine, with interviews on Monocle Radio and BBC Radio 4.