SYD SHELTON

Syd Shelton (1947) is a British photographer best known for his photographs documenting the Rock Against Racism (RAR) movement from 1976 in the UK. Shelton studied fine art at Wakefield College of Art. In the early 1970s he began his photography practice following a move to Australia. In Sydney, Syd worked as a freelance photojournalist for newspapers such as Nation Review, Tribune, and Digger.

Upon his return to the UK, Shelton become one of the key activists in the Rock Against Racism movement. He was a photographer and one of the designers of the RAR magazine Temporary Hoarding from 1976 to 1981. During the 1980s he produced photographs for the press, graphics for the public and private sector. He also was co-editor and was the art director for a series of photographic books that included the award winning Day in the Life of London, and Ireland: A Week in the Life of a Nation.

His work has been widely published and is in numerous public and private collections including: the Victoria and Albert Museum, The Tate Gallery, The National Portrait Gallery, The Photographers Gallery, The Istrian Museum of Modern Art, Rock Archive, Eric Frank Fine Art and Autograph. In 2015 a book of Syd’s RAR associated photographs was published by Autograph, Syd Shelton: Rock Against Racism and accompanied by the touring exhibition of the same name.