I was honored to be part of “The Human Document: The Photography of Persuasion from 1930s America to Present Day,” an exhibition held at the Mead Gallery in Coventry from October 7 to December 10, 2016. This exhibition explored the influential role of photography in shaping public opinion from the Great Depression era to the present day.

The exhibit was divided into two sections. The first showcased over 100 evocative black-and-white photographs from the 1930s and 1940s, featuring work from the Farm Security Administration (FSA) program, captured by legendary photographers like Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans, and Arthur Rothstein. These images, originally used to highlight the plight of rural Americans during the Great Depression, continue to resonate today with their powerful depictions of hardship and resilience.

The second section brought the narrative into contemporary times, featuring works from myself and other notable photographers such as Richard Billingham, Paul Graham, and Chris Killip. My contribution included images taken on my mobile phone of strangers in the urban environment, which connected my work with a broader historical and social narrative. This demonstrated the continued relevance of photography in addressing critical societal issues and underscored the enduring power of documentary photography to influence social change.