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Photography exhibition looks at pivotal changes in British society
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THE “Work, Rest and Play: British Photography from the 1960s to Today” exhibition reflects upon the changes that have occurred in British culture over the last half century.
As part of the 2015 UK-China Year of Cultural Exchange, the exhibition is curated by The Photographers’ Gallery, London with Shanghai Minsheng Art Museum and the Cultural and Education Section of the British Consulate General in Shanghai acting as hosts. More than 400 images by 38 photographers and artists are on display.
“The show introduces the work of key figures who have contributed significantly to the development of the medium through the prism of documentary practices. While any exhibition of this kind cannot include everyone, this selection aims to highlight artists and photographers who, through their particular vision, enable us to understand the world in fresh and unexpected ways,” says Brett Rogers, director at The Photographers’ Gallery in London.
Highlighting various approaches, from fashion and portraiture to photojournalism and fine art, the exhibit showcases the UK’s diversity.
Arranged chronologically, the exhibition explores the country’s changing national characteristics and attitudes over the last five decades. Topics include multiculturalism, political protest, the class system, pop culture and everyday life.
The dawn of the new millennium is a fascinating period in which Britain has experienced profound social and economic transformations. New technologies and the explosion of social media have changed how individuals communicate and how they express themselves. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, international terrorism, the financial crisis and globalization have been major events that have defined this new era.
Photographers have traveled around the country observing these narratives and exploring the boundaries between the still and moving image. Their views often involve conceptual elements and tell contradictory stories ambiguously situated between fiction and fact.
For example, Tim Walker’s fashion series evoked a fairytale-like world. The pleasurable escapism in the images comes across as more important than the clothes themselves.
This new era is a stark contrast from the 1960s, when the country experienced numerous social and cultural changes. During the decade London became a center for music, fashion and a flourishing British art scene. Photographers at the time were interested in capturing the world around them, documenting social and political events. Editorial photography dominated in magazines, as did professional studio portraiture — evidence of the growing cult of celebrity within popular culture.
Terence Donovan’s work had a playfulness that took fashion photography onto the street. Linda McCartney, married to the Beatles’ Paul McCartney, merged the public and the private to produce celebrity images that were almost like family snapshots. This new intimacy offered close look into the lives of famous people that viewers found appealing.
By the 1970s, an economic recession had led to high unemployment. Numerous photographers became more politically conscious and socially engaged during this period. Some chose to point their lenses at declining industries and the people who were affected most.
Photographers like Shirley Baker and Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen took an interest in working-class families and threatened communities in parts of England where traditional life was fading fast. Meanwhile, Vanley Burke focussed on ethnic minorities as they strived for equal rights.
British society was defined by a new economy in the 1980s. Photographers once again showed a willingness to change with the times, dropping the documentary style in favor of satire. Martin Parr, a color photo pioneer, challenged the “mythology of Britishness” with his satirical pictures of everyday life.
The exhibition also looks at the rise of Britpop, Cool Britannia and the Girl Power phenomenon that dominated the 1990s. Portraying the young fans of the Spice Girls, Clare Strand’s images examine the vulnerable, preteen fans and contrast them with the stereotyped view of femininity embodied by their role models.
Date: Through August 23 (closed on Mondays), 10am-6pm
Venue: Shanghai Minsheng Art Museum, 570 Huaihai Rd W.
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