In this prolific exhibition, Tate Britain explores a pivotal era in British history and its photographic scene: the 1980s.
The 1980s were an explosive decade for Britain, marked by profound social, economic, and political changes amidst the rise of neoliberalism. Although Margaret Thatcher, with her blue suits and severe helmet of blonde hair, is scarcely represented in the exhibition—she appears in only two of the roughly 350 images — Thatcherism and its repercussions are at stake here. A double edge ideology that is powerfully embodied by the curators’ clever juxtaposition of Martin Parr’s iconic series The Cost of Living, an exuberant portrait of the rising middle class, and Paul Graham’s Beyond Caring, which expresses the grim reality of unemployment.
From the very first room, the tone is set with documentation of the many protests that defined the era, from the miners’ strike and Greenham Common to the Northern Ireland conflict and the LGBT movement. Originally meant to be focused on documentary photography, the exhibition soon expanded to explore the different paths photography took in response to the seismic shifts of the 1980s. One room is dedicated to landscapes, a genre deeply popular in England, which photographers like Ingrid Pollard reimagined through a more conceptual and eminently political approach. Another room delves into the theoretical development of photography with a focus on the pioneering work of Victor Burgin, who blended image and text to address themes such as labor, racial issues, and the notion of community. The exhibition also features a compelling dialogue between Jo Spence and Maud Sulter, whose work challenges photography’s colonial and sexist past through a collaborative lens.
Racial and sexual identity are thoroughly explored in subsequent rooms, with a particular emphasis on communities. For Jasmine Chohan, one of the exhibition’s curators, it was important to spotlight communities often excluded from mainstream narratives and to depict their realities from within. This includes Roy Mehta’s tender look at the vibrant multiculturalism of Brent, in the North West of London and Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen’s delicate portrayal of everyday life in social housing near Newcastle.
Among the many shifts of the 1980s, the most significant for the history of photography was undoubtedly the advent of color. Until then, only black-and-white photography was deemed worthy of being considered art or documentation. Peter Fraser was one of Britain’s pioneers of color photography, followed by now-renowned figures like Martin Parr, Paul Reas, and Anna Fox, as well as the lesser-known Joy Gregory, whose chromatic experiments are perhaps the exhibition’s most poetic contribution.
After celebrating a Black body free from essentialism in the works of Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Ajamu X, and Lyle Ashton Harris, who powerfully explore themes of masculinity and sexuality, the exhibition concludes with a tribute to the subcultures that embraced photography as a tool of expression “both politically engaged and celebratory.”
The 80s: Photographing Britain is an ambitious project that spanned several years of research led jointly by three curators. Yes, the result is a lengthy and at times meandering storyline. Yes, there might be some historical omissions—“Where are the punks?” many outraged commentators have cried. Nonetheless, this exhibition remains a fascinating dive into a complex decade, examined with a fresh approach that brings visibility to themes and communities that were previously absent from the narrative that strongly resonate with contemporary concerns.
Zoé Isle de Beauchaine
The 80s : Photographing Britain
Until May 5, 2025
Tate Britain
Millbank, London SW1P 4RG, United Kingdom
https://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-britain
