Maggie Murray Archive
About this Archive
Administrative/Biographical History
Maggie Murray (b1942) is a photojournalist and documentary photographer with a particular interest in social issues. She trained as a photographer at Regent Street Polytechnic in the 1960s, which is now the University of Westminster.
In the 1970s she was a member of the Hackney Flashers mixed media agitprop collective. In 1982 she was a founding member of Format Photographers, the women only photographic agency. She travelled widely – covering aspect of development for NGOs, charities, publishers and occasionally newspapers.
Most of her commissions were to African countries, but she also worked in India, the Middle East, Hong Kong, Japan and European countries such as Denmark, Greece and Finland. Her particular interests were everyday life and work. Later on and in line with her growing feminism, she focused especially on the lives of women and other underrepresented groups. This ranged from showing the work of a medical/agricultural centre in rural India in the 70s, to HIV/Aids education in Zambia in the 1990s.
Her work was used in many books, articles and exhibitions. Often these took the form of collaborating with others including Jo Spence and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Books
Photography. Richard Greenhill, Maggie Murray, Jo Spence. Macdonald Educational : 1977
Our Own Freedom. photographs by Maggie Murray ; introduction and comments by Buchi Emecheta. Sheba : 1982
Exhibitions
Six 63. Aldeburgh Festival, Suffolk 1963
Women: a photographic exhibition. Half Moon Photography Workshop, London, 1974.
Men: A Exhibition of Photographs taken by Women. Half Moon Photography Workshop, London, 1975.
Fighting Spirit: An exhibition on women and martial arts. Cockpit Gallery, London. 1989.
Telling Times. Watershed Gallery, Bristol. 1992.
Ultimate Format: Format Women Photographers 1983 – 2003. Photofusion Gallery, London. 2003.
Format Photography Agency 1983 - 2003. National Portrait Gallery, London. 2010.
Scope and Content
Archive of photographer Maggie Murray, including: over 2,5000 black & white and colour photographs depicting people and places relating to Belgium; Burkina Faso; Denmark; Egypt; Ethiopia; Finland; France; Ghana; Greece; Holland; Hong Kong; India; Japan; Kenya; London; Mali; the Middle East; Rwanda; Senegal; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Tanzania; Uganda; Zambia; arts and culture; babies, children and nurseries; death; demonstrations; disability; education and training; generations; health; housing; important to me [Maggie Murray]; issues; Jo Spence; politics; portraits; sport and leisure; teenagers; men at work; women at work; and miscellaneous. (1967-2003); contact sheets and negatives of people and places including Ethiopia; Somalia; Sweden; India; Sudan; Kenya; Tanzania; Ghana; Burkina Faso; Senegal; Mali; Rwanda; Egypt; South Africa; Russia; Uganda; Finland; France; Hong Kong; Japan; Zambia; London; Oxford; Greenham Common; relating to issues and organisations including demonstrations; Scope; Mind; NUPE; NALGO; GLC; politicians; and Pride in London (1967-1997); colour slides depicting people and places including Burkina Faso; Egypt; Ethiopia; Ghana; Kenya; Mali; Rwanda; Senegal; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Tanzania; Zambia; Moscow; Japan; Hong Kong; India; Czechoslovakia; Denmark; Finland; Malta; Greece; France; London; themes including arts and museums; death; demonstrations; people with disabilities; education; energy; generations; health; housing; LGBTQ+; media; money; oddments; portraits; recycling and conservation; religion; sport and leisure; and work. [1967-1997]; photographic prints taken by Maggie Murray which have been enlarged and produced as posters by different organizations including Action de Carême, United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, and Christian Aid. (1975); Twenty-seven (27) notebooks, diaries and notes Murray used to accompany her photographs. (1967-1996); publications and other works featuring or relating to photography by Maggie Murray (1964-1992).
Quantity
2,500 photographs, 20 binder boxes of negatives, 8 boxes of photographic slides, 17 posters
