| Code | DS/UK/549 |
| Person Name | Barber; Ed (1949-2017); Portrait and Documentary Photographer, Designer, Curator, Teacher |
| Dates | 1949-2017 |
| Dates and Places | 1949 Born in England
1976 Graduated from the Central London Polytechnic with a BA in Photographic Arts |
| History | Barber, a British portrait and documentary photographer, was born in 1949. After receiving a BA in Photographic Arts from the Central London Polytechnic in 1976, Barber spent four years working at Camerawork, editing the magazine, and establishing the nationwide touring exhibition programme. As told by his close friend Peter Kennard, it was Barber’s innovative idea to laminate the exhibitions held at the gallery, to protect them from issues such as water damage. As Kennard discusses, the laminated exhibitions were then sent on tour, and allowed audiences across the country to view the work of ‘young, socially concerned photographers’. Barber and Kennard worked together on a number of pieces for both the CND (Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament), and the Half Moon Gallery and its magazine Camerawork. A 1979 collaboration with Kennard led to Barber’s five years documentary on the Peace Movement during the 1980s, one of the most iconic works of his career. Barber also worked closely with his wife Danielle Inga on a number of projects.
Barber was known for his exploration of people in their everyday environments, and viewed photography as a tool through which to present people as they actually lived, and experienced the world around them. Barber also shared anti-war messages within his work, and explored how everyday people protested against political crises. Barber died in 2017, leaving behind a powerful legacy with his work. |
| Activity | 1975 Family Units
1976 People Portraits, Half Moon Photography Workshop
Late 1970s Cheshire Home
c1970s Shipyard
1984 Bomb Disposal: Peace Camps & Direct Action, Camerawork, London
1984 Peace Moves: Nuclear Protest in the 1980s, published by Chatto & Windus
1987 Islington’s People: Changes in Our Working Lives, funded by Islington Council
1987 A Stitch in Time, Gunnersbury Park Museum
1990 Home Truths, funded by The Photographers’ Gallery Trust
1997 Flower Portraits, Concord Sylvania Gallery, London
2000 Edward Barber: In the City, published by Concrete Editions
2001 Edward Barber: In the City, National Portrait Gallery, London
2004 15-18: Teenagers in their Rooms, Fashion Space Gallery, London
2004 Teenage Kicks: Adolescence as Subject, Royal Hibernian Academy, Dublin
2013 Resolve: An Intimate Survey of Work, Concrete Editions (created alongside wife Danielle Inga)
2016 Peace Signs, Imperial War Museum, London
Career
1976-1980 Worked at Camerawork
2006 Established Visual Aesthetics Club alongside his wife, Danielle Inga
2012 Completed a series of street portraits entitled Everyday Fashion to be included within Sandy Black’s book The Sustainable Fashion Handbook
2003-2012 Worked at the University of the Arts, London. Became the Director of Programmes for Fashion Photography at the London College of Fashion, and Ran the BA (Hons) Fashion Photography Course. |
| Relationships | Peter Kennard, Collaborator and Friend, CND, Half Moon Gallery and Camerawork |
| Danielle Inga, Wife and Collaborator, Resolve: An Intimate Survey of Works, 2013 |
| Source | Barber, Edward. Edward Barber: Photographer. Accessed July 12, 2024. http://www.edwardbarber.net.
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| Kennard, Peter. “Obituary: Edward Barber 1949-2017”. British Journal of Photography (2017). Accessed July 12, 2024. https://www.1854.photography/2017/02/barberobit/. |