The English represents a personal exploration of England and English life. It was a project that Berry was able to undertake as a result of receiving the very first Arts Council Photography Bursary.
Berry has explained: "Though I was born and grew up in the North of England, I was in the odd situation of being English and knowing very little about England, having spent much of my life abroad. I set out to record what I saw professionally. But in spite of a journalistic purpose I am drawn to visual situations. Many areas of life are difficult of access to a photographer. I have had to select my favorite photographs and that must militate against a comprehensive view. In the end such a book can only offer a personal and partial view of what one has seen. Readers must draw their own conclusions about the photographs and what they add up to."
Ian Berry's images of old and young, of all classes, at home, at work, at leisure, together and alone, will inform, sadden, delight, and illuminate England and the English way of life.
