Syd Shelton (born 1947) is a British photographer, living in Hooe, who documented the

Rock Against Racism Rock Against Racism (RAR) was a political and cultural movement which emerged in 1976 in reaction to a rise in racist attacks on the streets of the United Kingdom and increasing support for the far-right National Front at the ballot box. Betwe ...

movement. His work is held in the collections of

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

and the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

and the National Portrait Gallery

Life and work

Shelton was born in Pontefract in 1947. Having studied fine art in Yorkshire he began his photography practice in the early 1970s, following a move to Australia. In Sydney, Shelton worked as a freelance photo-journalist for newspapers such as ''Nation Review'', ''The Age'', and ''Digger''. In 1975 he had a solo exhibition of his photographs, ''Working Class Heroes'' at the Sydney Film-makers Cooperative. In 1976, Shelton returned to London and established the design and photography partnership Red Wedge Graphics' which evolved into the current agency Graphicsi. Shelton become one of the key activists in the movement

(RAR). He was a photographer and one of the designers of the RAR magazine 'Temporary hoarding' which was published between 1976 and 1981. During the 1980s, as well as producing photographs for magazines and the press, and graphics for the public and private sector, Shelton co-edited, and was art director of, a series of photographic books that includes ''Day in the Life of London'', and ''Ireland: A Week in the Life of a Nation''. He now lives in Hove.

Publications

Books of work by Shelton

*''Rock Against Racism.'' London:

Autograph ABP Autograph ABP, previously known as the Association of Black Photographers, is a British-based international, non-profit-making, photographic arts agency. History Autograph was originally established in London in 1988. Founders included the photog ...

, 2016. . Co-edited by

Mark Sealy Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fi ...

and

Carol Tulloch Carol Tulloch is a British author and academic who is a Professor of Dress, Diaspora and Transnationalism at the University of the Arts London, known for her work on cultural heritage, auto/biography, personal archives and style narratives. Biog ...

. With an essay by

Paul Gilroy Paul Gilroy (born 16 February 1956) is an English sociologist and cultural studies scholar who is the founding Director of the Sarah Parker Remond Centre for the Study of Race and Racism at University College, London (UCL). Gilroy is the 2019 ...

. *''Syd Shelton, Red Saunders, Malcolm McGregor: A Day in the Life of London. Jonathan Cape Ltd, 1985, 288 pages, ISBN 978-0224029759. *''Syd Shelton, Red Saunders: Ireland: A Week in the Life of a Nation. Century Hutchinson, 1986, 288 pages, ISBN 9780712695183. *''The Falls.'' Fistful of Books, 2022. Edited by Simon Robinson.

Zines of work by Shelton

*''Crowds 1977–1981.'' Southport:

Café Royal A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-caf ...

, 2019. With a text by Tulloch. Edition of 250 copies. Later reprinted. *''West Belfast 1979.'' Southport: Café Royal, 2020. Edited by Craig Atkinson. *''Street Portraits.'' Southport: Café Royal, 2020. Edited by Atkinson. *''The Battle of Lewisham 1977.'' Southport: Café Royal, 2021. Edited by Atkinson. *''Street Portraits Two.'' Southport: Café Royal, 2021. Edited by Atkinson. *''Rock Against Racism-Live.'' Southport: Café Royal, 2022. Edited by Atkinson.

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

*''Syd Shelton: Rock Against Racism,'' curated by Mark Sealy and Carol Tulloch,

, Rivington Place, London, 2015;

Impressions Gallery Impressions Gallery is an independent contemporary photography gallery in Bradford, England. It was established in 1972 and located in York until moving to Bradford in 2007. Impressions Gallery also runs a photography bookshop, publishes its own ...

, Bradford, 2016; Street Level Photoworks, Glasgow, 2017;

Gallery Oldham Gallery Oldham is a free-to-view public museum and art gallery in the Cultural Quarter of central Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. Design Designed by architects Pringle Richards Sharratt, Gallery Oldham was completed in its original for ...

, Oldham, 2020

Group exhibitions

*''Music Migrations (1962–1989),''

Cité nationale de l'histoire de l'immigration The Cité nationale de l'histoire de l'immigration is a museum of immigration history located in the 12th arrondissement of Paris at 293, avenue Daumesnil. The nearest métro station is Porte Dorée. It is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. t ...

, Paris, 2019–2020 *''Facing Britain – British documentary photography since the 1960s,'' Museum Goch, Germany, 2020 *''Stan Firm inna Inglan: Black Diaspora in London, 1960–70s'', Tate Britain, London, 2016/2017 *''The Vanishing East End: 1970–1980s'', Tower Hamlets Local History Library and Archives, London, October 2021 – February 2022 *''In the Moment: The Art of Music Photography'', Barbican Library, London, June–September 2023

Collections

Shelton's work is held in the following permanent collections: *

, UK: 7 prints (as of April 2020) 4 prints (as of August 2021) *

, London: 8 prints (as of April 2020) * National Portrait Gallery, London: 2 prints (as of September 2021) *

, London

References

External links

*
"Rock Against Racism: Syd Shelton's photographs of a movement in 1970s Britain"
Katy Cowan, ''Creative Boom,'' 2017
"Punk and reggae fought back against racism in the 70s"
Stuart Brumfitt, ''i-D,'' 2015 {{DEFAULTSORT:Shelton, Syd British photojournalists 20th-century British photographers People from Pontefract Living people 1947 births Photographers from Yorkshire