The Centre for British Photography opened to the public in January 2023. With 8,000 square feet over three floors, it's first exhibitions include two major group shows, four ‘in focus’ displays, and a photography sales gallery that sells photographs and books. Entry to the centre is FREE.
As well as our own curated exhibitions we are looking to partner with others and are keen to provide a London venue for exhibitions originated by institutions outside the capital. We also hope that, where possible, our exhibitions are available to tour nationally and internationally in order to reach an even wider audence. In order to make these loans as straightforward as possible, our packages for exhibition hire are priced to include curatorial expertise, marketing advice, templates for captions and signage, and artist fees, where appropriate.
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Headstrong: Women and Empowerment
Curated by Fast Forward: Women in Photography 26 Jan - 28 May 2023 Self-portraiture has always been a tool of empowerment for women. Societies have led us to believe that, as women, we have a certain place and need to perform in a certain way and this has been like wearing a straight jacket. Feminist politics have affected changes to these patriarchal ideas... Read more -
The English at Home
20th Century Photographs from the Hyman Collection 26 Jan - 28 May 2023 The English at Home: 20th Century Domestic Photographs from the Hyman Collection presents over 150 works to explore the central place of the home in British photography over the last century. The exhibition takes its title from one of the most important twentieth century photography publications, Bill Brandt’s first book,... Read more -
Andrew Bruce and Anna Fox. Spitting / Spitting Image
Commission by The Hyman Collection, 2015 26 Jan - 28 May 2023 In 2015 The Hyman Collection commissioned Andrew Bruce and Anna Fox to respond to the original Fluk and Law Spitting Image puppets of Margaret Thatcher and her Cabinet Ministers in our collection. One of the most popular British television programmes of the 1980s and 1990s, watched by an audience of... Read more -
Jo Spence. Fairytales and Photography
Curated by the Jo Spence Memorial Library Archive (Birkbeck, University of London) and the Centre for British Photography 26 Jan - 28 May 2023 Jo Spence (1934- 1992) is a key figure in British photography of the last fifty years. A photographer, writer, educator and photo therapist, her work has proved highly influential on subsequent generations of photographers and writers. Spence began her career as a commercial photographer, specialising in family portraits and wedding... Read more -
Natasha Caruana. Fairytale for Sale
26 Jan - 28 May 2023 Natasha Caruana's Fairytale for Sale is a recent acquisition by The Hyman Collection. The installation explores wedding customs in the UK, revealing the fantasy, performance and trophy moments of the traditional big day. The series consists of online adverts of brides wearing redundant wedding dresses. The smiling faces of the... Read more -
Heather Agyepong. Wish You Were Here
26 Jan - 28 May 2023 In 2019 The Hyman Collection commissioned Heather Agyepong to respond to early twentieth century postcard imagery reflecting the dance craze in Europe, The Cake Walk. The resulting series was named Wish You Were Here (2020). Artist's Statement by Heather Agyepong: 'Unless we learn the lesson of self-appreciation and practice it,... Read more -
Paul Hill. Platinum Prenotations
Photography Sales Gallery 27 Jan - 23 Apr 2023 Paul Hill has produced a limited edition set of platinum-palladium prints of some of his most recognised and seminal images. Prized for their rich, subtle tonal quality, wealth of fine detail and stability, platinum-palladium prints are at the summit of traditional photographic printing. Proposing a fresh interpretation of a selection... Read more -
Shirley Baker: Street Life
Photography Sales Gallery 27 Jan - 23 Apr 2023 We are delighted to present this opportunity to acquire Shirley Baker's most celebrated street scenes photographed araound Manschester and Salford. The display features many of her best loved photographs. All works come direct from the Estate of Shirley Baker. Shirley Baker was one of the only women practising street photography... Read more -
Heather Agyepong: Wish You Were Here. Postcard Edition
Photography Sales Gallery 27 Jan - 23 Apr 2023 This series was originally commissioned by the Hyman Collection in 2019 as exhibited in our In Focus gallery upstairs. This special postcard edition was first presented in PHOTO50: BEAUTIFUL EXPERIMENTS 2023, curated by Katy Barron and Pelumi Odubanjo. The Hyman Collection commissioned Heather Agyepong to respond to early twentieth century... Read more -
Centre Editions 1. Karen Knorr
Photography Sales Gallery 27 Jan - 23 Apr 2023 The imposing edifice of Deogarh Mahal dates back to 1670 AD when Rawat Dwarka Dasji built it as a family residence. Located on the borders of Mewar, Marwar and Merwara, this 17th century structure commands far-reaching views of the Aravalli mountain range. Today it is a hotel and this particular... Read more -
Colin Jones. Town and Country
Photography Sales Gallery 27 Jan - 23 Apr 2023 Read more
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Visual Politics
Recent Acquisitions by The Hyman Collection 10 Jan - 28 Aug 2022 This exhibition presents a curated selection of works from the Hyman Collection mainly based on recent acquisitions. In tribute to the intersectional feminist bell hooks who died in December 2021, its title references one of her best known publications on visual art. The works included address such themes as history and memory, society and politics, sexuality and gender and encourage the viewer to create their own dialogues between works. Read more -
A Different Mirror
Photographs from the Hyman Collection. Photo Oxford Festival, Oxford 15 Oct - 15 Nov 2021 A Different Mirror presents a dialogue between two generations of socially engaged photographers from the pioneering work of Jo Spence and Alexis Hunter, grounded in 1970s feminism, to the recent projects of three young artists: Heather Agyepong, Eliza Hatch and Bindi Vora. Selected from The Hyman Collection, the private collection... Read more -
Jo Spence. From Fairytales to Photo Therapy
Photographs from the Hyman Collection at Arnolfini, Bristol 19 Dec 2020 - 20 Jun 2021 Spence has been an integral figure within photographic discourse from the 1970s onwards. Throughout her diverse projects she is well known for her highly politicised approach to photography and the representation of her own struggles with cancer. From Fairy Tales to Phototherapy focuses on the intersection between arts, health and... Read more -
A Picture of Health
Women Photographers from the Hyman Collection at Arnolfini, Bristol 14 Nov 2020 - 1 Jul 2021 The exhibition, which runs from 14 November to 21 February 2021, and its forthcoming programme have been co-curated by Creative Shift and Fresh Arts, Bristol's leading organisations, providing creative wellbeing activities, to adults who are experiencing or are vulnerable to, isolation and mental health challenges. A Picture of Health aims... Read more -
Modern Nature
Photographs from the Hyman Collection at the Hepworth Wakefield 13 Jul 2018 - 22 Apr 2019 This online exhibition is an expanded version of the show presented at the Hepworth Wakefield. It includes more recent acquisitions such as a series of works by John Davies in which he records the trees in an urban park threatened by a property development; constructed, conceptual views of nature by... Read more -
The Hyman Collection Donation
Yale Centre for British Art 16 Jan - 29 Mar 2018 The Yale Center for British Art has expanded its collection of photographs through a generous gift of 125 works from the Londonbased collectors Claire and James Hyman. The gift includes prints by famed British photographers Bill Brandt (1904–1983), Tony Ray-Jones (1941–1972), and Martin Parr (b. 1952), and it introduces works... Read more