7th October 2011 – 8th January 2012

A Photographic exhibition of Ken Russell: film maker, photographer 1954-1957

Prior to earning iconic status as a director, Ken Russell spent several fruitful years working as a freelance documentary photographer in London in the mid-fifties.

The photographs he took during this period chart the progress of Russell’s eye from his late twenties and to the turn into his thirties. Sometimes poignant, occasionally surreal and frequently funny, they capture all the irreverence and unconventionality that would characterise his work as a filmmaker.

The images, discovered in 2007 by photographic library TopFoto as boxes of negatives, capture in many cases an almost forgotten period of history: a period of transition from the depressing aftermath of the Second World War to the youth movements and reinvigorated hope of the 1960’s.

The full collection documents a journey along a lively Portobello Road where the children, not the cars, still owned the streets (though not for much longer) and the first and only close-up of the infamous Teddy Girls (plenty is known about Teddy Boys – the girls were unrecorded until Ken Russell found them), through Trafalgar Square, the White Chapel Gallery, Holland Park and other insights into the unfolding daily lives of Londoners.

Many of Ken Russell’s images have been carefully restored and printed by London hand printing specialist Robin Bell, to Ken’s exacting specification, and shown widely since 2007, starting in London, Bristol, and the South East of England then travelling to Canada, the Czech Republic, and New York’s Lincoln Centre.

“I know how Howard Carter felt when he opened Tutankhamen’s tomb and saw “wonderful things”. One of the most exciting aspects of TopFoto’s vast collections is that we sometimes discover buried treasure like Ken Russell’s work, and it’s a privilege to be working with him and Dimbola Lodge for this exhibition.” Flora Smith, Partner, TopFoto.co.uk

Ken Russell was a film fan from the start but his early ambition to enter the industry never got further than the studio gates. So he turned to photography, from surrealism to reportage. Shortly to become controversial director of international repute, he never touched his Rolleicord again, but this exhibition is a glimpse of an impressive, meteoric, talent.

All images in the exhibition are signed by Ken Russell and available to buy in limited edition. Prices start at £700

Opening times
Galleries, Museum and Tearooms Open Tuesday to Sunday and Bank Holidays 10am-4pm (November to February) and 10am-5pm (March to October) Main School Holidays we are open daily.

Adults £4 Students £3.50 (with valid NUS card) Children under 16 years FREE