A working-class photographer captures the impact of Thatcherism on the north of England but is unable to escape the poverty and inequality she exposed.
Driven by a commitment to document the impact of deindustrialisation on working class communities in Northeast England in the 1970s and 1980s, Tish Murtha used her camera to expose societal inequality. She felt she had an obligation to the people and problems within her local environment, and that documentary photography could highlight and challenge the social disadvantages that she herself had suffered. However, despite early acclaim for her work, she was unable to make a living from photography and died in poverty.
With Tish’s daughter Ella the film sets out to ask: who was Tish Murtha and why did she not receive her due? What does her work tell us about the value society places on working class communities and working-class artists?
Director Paul Sng will take part in a Q&A after the screening.