Shining Lights

Shining Lights is the first critical anthology of Black women photographers active in the UK during the 1980s and 1990s, providing a richly illustrated overview of a significant and overlooked chapter of British photographic history.

Seen through the lens of Britain's sociopolitical and cultural contexts, the publication tells a unique story from the dual perspectives of lived experience and historical investigation. Edited and researched by Joy Gregory, one of the period's most influential photographic artists, alongside art historian Taous Dahmani, who contributes a keynote essay.

The pioneering and diverse work created by Black women practitioners in the UK over the course of these two decades marked an important juncture in both documentary and conceptual practices, including the experimental use of photomontage, self-portraiture, staged imagery, and photography in dialogue with other media.