Since its foundation in 1988, Autograph has collected photographic material which reflects our mission: to use photography to explore questions of cultural identity, race, representation, human rights and social justice. Our unique photography collection charts the contributions of diverse cultures in Britain over two centuries, a living archive of thousands of prints, negatives and slides; archive film; and digital and analogue contact sheets plus related ephemera.
Resilient Heritage builds on the success of three previous National Lottery Heritage Fund grants to support collection development projects which have enabled Autograph to significantly extend its collection and engage a wide public and professional audience. The project has allowed Autograph to catalogue and care for our collection, and share it online and physically.
At the heart of Resilient Heritage is consolidation: ensuring Autograph's collection is secured into the future by improving our collection standards and systems, as well as ensuring knowledge about the collection is preserved.
A free outdoor display showcasing photographs that share the journeys of the Windrush generation. Launches 5 January 2023 at Autograph.
Read moreConsidering how we can work together towards diversifying our national collections and support artists in the making, and placing, of new works.
Watch backWith thanks to National Lottery players
Image credits:
Collection display at Autograph: Some of the thousands disembarking from the liner Begona at Southampton shortly before the Commonwealth Immigration Act came into force. 2nd July 1962 [detail]. Courtesy TopFoto.
Online event: Zanele Muholi, Bayephi III, Constitution Hill, Johannesburg, 2017 [detail]. Commissioned by Autograph © and courtesy Zanele Muholi.
The Project in Pictures: 1) Installation image from Somnyama Ngonyama, Hail The Dark Lioness, Spelman College, Atlanta. 2018. Photograph by Mike Jensen. Courtesy Spelman College Museum of Fine Art. 2) Installation image from James Barnor: Accra/London - A Retrospective, Serpentine Galleries, UK. 2021. Photograph by Zoë Maxwell. Courtesy Serpentine. 3) Installation image from Mahtab Hussain: YOU GET ME?, Gallery Oldham, Manchester. 2019. Courtesy Gallery Oldham. 4) Installation image from Rotimi Fani-Kayode (1955-1989), Georgetown University, Washington. 2022. Courtesy Georgetown University. 5) Installation image from Omar Victor Diop, Fotografiska, Sweden. 2022-2023. Courtesy Fotografiska. 6) Installation image from Lina Iris Viktor: Dark Testament, Fotografiska, Estonia. 2020. Courtesy Fotografiska. 7) Installation image from Reclaiming & Making: Art, Desire, Violence, Museum of Sex, New York. 2021-2022. Courtesy Museum of Sex. 8) Installation image from Masculinities: Liberation Through Photography, Barbican Art Gallery, London. 2020. Courtesy Barbican Art Gallery. 9) Installation image from Raphael Albert: Miss Black and Beautiful, Midlands Art Cenre, Birmingham. 2018. Courtesy Midlands Art Centre.
Making the Collection More Visible Online: Please click into each page to view the full commission
Collection on Loan: Please click into each page to view the full commission
Autograph is a place to see things differently. Since 1988, we have championed photography that explores issues of race, identity, representation, human rights and social justice, sharing how photographs reflect lived experiences and shape our understanding of ourselves and others.