John Walmsley

The Ebbw Vale steelworks in full flow, 1971

To keep their skills up to date, ships' pilots must practice on these manned models designed to mimic the behaviour of large tankers.

Charlie Cavey, busking from inside a litter bin, Cambridge.

Culture clash during a student fashion show.

Vanessa Redgrave & Tariq Ali lead the ant-Vietnam war march to the US Embassy, London, 1968.

Dunquin was a small farming community on the tip of the Dingle peninsula. I was walking around and these kids came out to chat.

Clouds can be amazing, powerful and elegant all at the same time.

The rainbow is seen when light reflects off tiny ice crystals inside the body of the cloud's water vapour.

Liz Fritsch, along with this photographer, was one of the artists at Digswell House in the 70s.

Child's drawing in a north London school.

Balancing on his 'Grifter' bike for a better view, Gala Day at Wester Hailes, Edinburgh, 1979.

Whilst shooting in Wester Hailes on a grant from the Scottish Arts Council (as was), I came upon this wonderful urban scene.

Whilst shooting in Wester Hailes on a grant from the Scottish Arts Council (as was), this was the sight which greeted me on leaving the house one morning.

To get this shot I had to make the dangerous journey all the way to Farnborough for the Air Show.

Tourists imitating, 'Sir John Betjeman' statue by Martin Jennings at St Pancras International railway station, London, 2016. Betjeman, a poet and founder member of the Victorian Society, led the fight against plans to demolish the station and the attached Midland hotel. Success! It was renovated (on time and on budget) and is now the London terminus of the Eurostar cross-channel train service to Europe. This photographer frequently pops in for a coffee just to look and admire.

Bicycle stands, designed by EMBT/RMJM to be an integral part of the landscape at the Scottish Parliament building (architect: Enric Miralles) at Holyrood, Edinburgh.

Caricature of Theresa May, Prime Minister, at the anti-Brexit march to Parliament Square, London, 23rd March 2019. A million people of all ages marched demanding a 'People's Vote', a second referendum, ('Put It To The People!') to decide if Britain was to leave the European Union (EU) or not.

Hair, hair, everywhere during the 'Summer Eights', a week of rowing races for the Oxford University Colleges on the river Cherwell (the Thames), 2019.

Man with baggage viewing artworks at the 'Black & White' Christmas exhibition at Pineapple Black Arts, Hill Street Shopping Centre, Middlesborough, Yorkshire, 2020. One of the exhibitions I had work in.

Front cover of the book, 'Don't Tell Me How to Run My Art School'. Available to buy from my website.

John Walmsley

I’ve been a professional, freelance documentary photographer since leaving art school in 1968.  I’m the author or joint author of numerous books.  My work has been published in 1,000+ books worldwide and, in one form or another, is at the National Portrait Gallery, Tate Britain Library, the National Art Library at the V&A, the V&A Museum of Childhood, Liverpool Museum, la Bibliothèque nationale de France and the Library at the University of California, San Diego.  I like to take part in joint exhibitions, most recently in Sao Paolo, Tbilisi, London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Rome, France, NYC, Texas, Arizona, Los Angeles and several UK cities.

Mostly, I work on longer projects and with ordinary people.  Currently, I’m editing some of these stories as eBooks to be available on Amazon Books.

Recently, I’ve self-published two books of my work.  In 1979 I had a grant from the Scottish Arts Council to live and work on the Wester Hailes estate, Edinburgh.  The other, ‘Don’t Tell Me How to Run My Art School’, by John Walmsley & Claire Grey, is the inside story of the long student sit-in at Guiuldford School of Art in 1968 which led directly to students and staff being invited onto Advisory Boards at schools, colleges and Unis.  Both are available from my website.

Member of the National Union of Journalists and the Society of Authors

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