Portrait of Britain, is the largest exhibition of contemporary portrait photography ever held, as much a celebration of photography as it is a celebration of the diversity of our country’s people. 2019 was its fourth year, and British Journal of Photography launched the nationwide exhibition across JCDecaux UK’s national channel of digital screens.
The public encountered the winning photographs as they went about their daily lives; in rail stations, shopping malls, high streets, and at Heathrow Airport.
Following an open call by British Journal of Photography, thousands of portraits were submitted, and judges had the task of selecting the 200 shortlisted images from that number. All 200 images were printed in the Portrait of Britain Book Vol.2, published by Hoxton Mini Press.
Once again the range of images reflected the unique diversity of modern Britain, with portraits ranging from Max Miechowski’s portrait of a young couple salsa dancing in Burgess Park in London, to Shaun Ryder glaring at the the camera for his portrait by Theo McInnes. Some were chance encounters, some were staged for the camera, but all were arresting in their portrayal of the British people. Some, like Sirli Raitma’s portrait of her mother, also had a healing quality. Raitma started taking pictures of her mother to help her combat depression after moving to London widowed and suffering from epilepsy, and the portraits have helped combat this and boosted her confidence.
The winning images were displayed as part of the Portrait of Britain exhibition for the month of September.
Selected coverage - BBC In Pictures, The Guardian, The i, Royal Photographic Society Journal, Aesthetica, Evening Standard