If you’re from north of the Watford Gap, you’ll know that southerners can be a bit snooty about the north at times. In fact, I bet the idea of a visiting a ‘provincial’ northern town like Bradford or Warrington would get those Kensington yummy-mummy sorts quaking in their Manolos. Not that it bothers us lot – after all, us northerners are made of far sterner stuff.

How refreshing it was therefore, when I stumbled upon the work of John Bulmer, a photographer from the home counties, who during the 60s and 70s captured the stark beauty and honesty of working-class Northern people and their communities. In a time when industrial landscapes and economic deprivation meant that for many conditions were more than a little grim up north, he scratched the region’s soot covered surface and revealed its character and charm.

Bulmer’s big break came when he was commissioned for his first colour shoot  by the Sunday Times magazine. He was to provide photography to accompany an article entitled: “The north is dead… long live the new north”, which lauded its rich culture and community in a time when media attention was focused on swinging London. More importantly perhaps, these photos were to appear in colour, a revelation, as John explains: “It didn’t occur to anyone to take the north of England in colour – that was considered a black and white subject”.

He didn’t want his work to be influenced by stereotypes or resort to cliched images of urban decay, besides, as you can tell by his work, he found his subject matter rich and charming: “It was wonderful – another country altogether. I know that the north had a powerful image at the time, but I genuinely came up here without preconceptions.”

From women hanging washing out on cobbled streets to pit ponies being led across misty landscapes, Bulmer tackles both domestic and working life with equal delicacy and skill. His photos are intriguing, they draw you in with their naturalism, aided beautifully by the limitations of colour film which gave his shots a subtle, washed-out, almost pastel tone. Add to this his preference for shooting in subdued or dying light and his compositions look like fading memories.

My favourite is this shot of the miners. Ethereal and real at the same time, the mist creates a soft focus dreamscape from which the piercing, honest stare of the miner jumps out at you. Unpretentious and beautiful. Just like the north.

If you fancy seeing more of John Bulmer’s work, head to the The National Coal Mining Museum in Wakefield for Northern Soul: John Bulmer’s Images of Life and Times in the 1960s. The exhibition, showcasing his northern photography runs until 25th April. Alternatively, visit his website, where you can find both his black and white and colour series.

Tags: Art Direction, Coal Miners, Creativity, Design, Direct Marketing Agency, Direct Response Advertising, England, Industrial Landscapes, John Bulmer, Manchester Advertising Agency, National Coal Mining Museaum, Northern People, Photography

This entry was posted on Monday, March 22nd, 2010 at 2:39 pm and is filed under We Like. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.