| History | Maggie Murray (born 1942) is a photojournalist and documentary photographer with a particular interest in social issues.
She trained as a photographer at Regent Street Polytechnic in the 1960s, which is now the University of Westminster.
In the 1970s she was a member of the Hackney Flashers mixed media agitprop collective. In 1982 she was a founding member of Format Photographers, the women only photographic agency. She travelled widely – covering aspect of development for NGOs, charities, publishers and occasionally newspapers.
Most of her commissions were to African countries, but she also worked in India, the Middle East, Hong Kong, Japan and European countries such as Denmark, Greece and Finland. Her particular interests were everyday life and work. Later on and in line with her growing feminism, she focused especially on the lives of women and other underrepresented groups. This ranged from showing the work of a medical/agricultural centre in rural India in the 70s, to HIV/Aids education in Zambia in the 1990s.
Her work was used in many books, articles and exhibitions. Often these took the form of collaborating with others including Jo Spence and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. She has works in public collections including the National Portrait Gallery. Her archive is held at Bishopsgate Institute (Archive Ref MMPA). |
| Activity | Member of the Hackney Flashers photography collective.
Founding member of Format Photographers
Exhibitions:
'Six 63,' Aldeburgh Festival, Suffolk, 1963
'Women: a photographic exhibition,' Half Moon Photography Workshop, London, 1974.
'Men: A Exhibition of Photographs taken by Women,' Half Moon Photography Workshop, London, 1975.
'Fighting Spirit: An exhibition on women and martial arts,' Cockpit Gallery, London. 1989.
'Telling Times,' Watershed Gallery, Bristol, 1992.
'Ultimate Format: Format Women Photographers,' 1983 – 2003. Photofusion Gallery, London, 2003.
'Format Photography Agency 1983 - 2003,' National Portrait Gallery, London, 2010.
Group exhibitions include:
'The Picture of Health?' A touring exhibition by Jessica Evans, Rosy Martin, Maggie Murray, Jo Spence, Yana [?Jana] Stajno, [Cockpit Gallery, 1986] |