Writing her own Script. Women Photographers from the Hyman CollectionCurated by The Centre for British Photography

Photo London is pleased to present ‘Writing her own Script. Women Photographers from theHyman Collection’ as part of the 2023 Public Programme. Alongside a solo show of new workby this year’s Master of Photography Martin Parr, the exhibition is a timely celebration of thebest of British photography.

‘Writing her own Script’ celebrates many of the pioneering women photographers at work in Britain over the last 100 years. It charts a course from the 1930s to the present and provides an overview of photography in Britain that focuses on two strands: a humanistic documentarytradition and a more personal, performative, practice. The exhibition takes its name from alarge-scale photograph by Susan Hiller.

It begins with political and social engagement, presenting the very rare work of EdithTudor-Hart, the Picture Post photographs of Grace Robertson, the street photography ofDorothy Bohm and the humanism of Shirley Baker and Marketa Luskacova. It then suggests theimportance of this legacy to younger photographers that include Eliza Hatch and Bindi Vora. Itaims to provide an opportunity to consider the use of photography as a social or political tool.

The exhibition then focuses on the pioneering feminist work of Jo Spence, Alexis Hunter,Susan Hiller and Sonia Boyce and their exploration of psychological and physical wellbeing. Indoing so it aims to de-stigmatise subjects around mental health and create an environment inwhich people can have open conversations about their wellbeing. This section will include thephoto-therapy of Rosy Martin, powerful portraits by Anna Fox, and the self-portrait based worksof Heather Agyepong, Juno Calypso, Rose-Finn Kelcey and Polly Penrose.

The exhibition includes work by Heather Agyepong, Shirley Baker, Dorothy Bohm, SoniaBoyce, Juno Calypso, Helen Chadwick, Hannah Collins, Caroline Coon, Maisie Cousins, ElizaHatch, Rose Finn-Kelcey, Susan Hiller, Anna Fox, Sarah Jones, Karen Knorr, MarketaLuskacova, Sarah Maple, Rosy Martin, Linda McCartney, Polly Penrose, Grace Robertson, JoSpence, Edith Tudor-Hart and Bindi Vora.

James Hyman, Founding Director, Centre for British Photography, comments: “Following therecent opening of the Centre for British Photography, we are delighted to have this opportunityto present an exhibition of works from the Hyman Collection and to spread the word about ouractivities. For many years we have been committed to supporting women working inphotography, so we were pleased to be asked by Photo London to curate an exhibition thatfocuses on this important aspect of the collection.”

Photo London’s Founders Michael Benson and Fariba Farshad comment: “Since the outsetwhen we began with a major courtyard installation by Rut Blees Luxemburg, we havechampioned the role of women in photography. The number of women taking part in the Fairhas risen steadily to the point where 70% of the artists, curators and gallerists are female. So,we are delighted to spotlight women in photography through this exhibition which offers animportant look at the achievements and influence of the female practitioners who havetransformed the photographic landscape in Britain over the past century.”

For further information about Photo London 2023 and to book tickets, please visit:https://photolondon.org/