On The Contemporary Resurgence of Street Photography

The birth of Street Photography in Paris at the start of the 20th century is well documented. The rich period of Street Photography centred around New York in the 60’s and 70’s is also well recorded. But the current revival of interest in Candid Public Photography that started in the mid 1990’s in London and spread around the world through the newly arrived world wide web, remains un chronicled until now.

In January 2019 Nick Turpin, in consultation with members of the Street Photography community online, started the process of constructing a timeline of events, publications, exhibitions, festivals and groups that had played a part in this contemporary revival of interest in Street Photography. You are invited to email your additions and suggestions.

Timeline

1994

Bystander: A History of Street Photography by Joel Meyerowitz and Colin Westerbeck is published

1999

John Brownlow starts Street Photographers Forum ( Runs until 2011 ).

2000

in-public Street Photographers group launched by Nick Turpin ( Ludovic Fremeaux, Richard Bram, Matt Stuart, Trent Parke, Narelle Autio and And Morley-Hall joined in this year ).

John Brownlow starts pinkheadedbug.com (personal site including Oxford St project Human Traffic).

2001

The Sidewalk Never Ends: Street Photography Since the 1970’s exhibition at the Art Institute of Chicago

Second edition of Bystander: A History of Street Photography ( updated to include contemporary Street Photographers like Melanie Einzig and Gus Powell ).

2002

New York Capital of Photography by Max Kozloff with Exhibit at The Jewish Museum NYC. ( Focused on the huge contribution of the Jewish community to Street Photography ).

2003

Common Ground: Photographers on the Street at Tufts University Art Gallery ( Included 60’s and 70’s alongside contemporary Street Photographers Melanie Einzig and Gus Powell ).

2004

Flickr Launches

2005

Hardcore Street Photography group launches on Flickr

2006

Ibarionex Perello starts his Candid Frame Podcast

Crosswalks: Contemporary Street Photography, Oklahoma City Museum exhibition.

Onto the Streets exhibition Photofusion Gallery, London.

2007

Seconds to Real Street Photography group launches

John Maloof discovers Vivian Maier archive at Chicago auction.

2009

2point8.whileseated blog by Michael David Murphy

VIVO Photography Collective

2010

10 Years of in-public is published by Nick Turpin

in-public @ 10 exhibition Photofusion Gallery, London. ( https://www.flickr.com/photos/nickturpin/4642584227/ )

Street Photography Now is published by Thames and Hudson

Street Photography Now challenge group on Flickr

Instagram Launches

2011

The first London Street Photography Festival.

Format Photography Festival, Derby is themed around Street Photography.

Burn My Eye Group launches.

Museum of London show London Street Photography ( Telegraph article ).

Eric Kim starts to popularise Street Photography through blogging, social media and workshops.

in-sight film about the in-public photographers released.

Un-Posed Polish Street Photography Collective launched.

2012

The Miami Street Photography Festival is launched (Now only on Instagram)

Street Photo Thailand collective is launched.

2013

Observe Collective launches

The Street Collective launches (Now only on Instagram)

Everybody Street film by Cheryl Dunn is released.

2014

The Street Photographers Manual by David Gibson is published.

Fragment Collective, French Street Photography group launched.

Double X Street Female Street Photography Flickr group launched.

2015

Full Frontal Flash Collective of Flash using Street Photographers

Siam Street Nerds group is launched. (Web site gone)

2016

Berlin1020 Street Photographers Group, Germany.

Women in Street Network launched

Ken Walton launches StreetFoto San Francisco

Jason Reed launches The London Street Photography Symposium ( Ran for three years)

2017

Bystander: A History of Street Photography is republished featuring contemporary street photographers.

APF Magazine launches run from India by Vineet and Rohit Vohra.

In-Street Indian Street Photography Collective launches. (web site now gone )

La Calle es Nuestra Spanish Street Photography collective is created.

Candid Public Photography initiative by Nick Turpin launches.

Hoxton Mini Press create STREET LONDON from The London Street Photography Symposium.

2018

Street.Life.Photography Exhibition at Deichtor Hallen, Hamburg, Germany. (Significant for showing seven decades of Street Photography including the contemporary generation).

in-public group splits over the inclusion of computational Street Photography and staged Street Photography.

Julie Hrudova starts Street Repeat on Instagram exploring Street Photography themes and cliches.

Eyeshot Magazine launch its first paper Street Photography Issue: Surreal

Unexposed Collective founded by Julia Coddington and Rebecca Wiltshire with an emphasis on female and non binary street photographers.

2019

Up Photographers group formed.

Little Box Collective formed.

2020

Women Street Photographers is formed by Gulnara Samoilova and Ximena Echague to provide extra exposure for female artists.

Nick Turpin relaunches iN-PUBLiC with a broader candid public photography definition of Street Photography.

2023

Reclaim The Streets published by Thames and Hudson

This timeline was created in conjunction with members of the street photography community in January 2019, please feel free to email suggestions and additions.

The Google ngram viewer is able to show the incidence of words and phrases in publications since 1800. Searching for the incidence of the phrases ‘street photography’ and ‘street photographer’ gives a good indication of what has happened to street photography over the last 200 years.