Featured as part of the 2015 UK-China Year of Cultural Exchange, this is the first touring exhibition in China solely devoted to British photography. The exhibition is curated by the Photographers’ Gallery, London in collaboration with the Pin Projects, Beijing OCT-LOFT, Shenzhen and is supported by the British Council.
This exhibition presents a survey of over fifty years of British photography through the lens of documentary practices. Featuring work by some of the most significant photographers and artists of the time, it reflects photography’s growing cultural position both within the UK and on the international stage.
Work, Rest and Play features over 450 images by thirty-seven acclaimed photographers and artists working across a wide range of genres and disciplines, including photojournalism, portraiture, fashion and fine art.
Arranged chronologically the exhibition explores British society through changing national characteristics, attitudes and activities over the last five decades. Multiculturalism, consumerism, political protest, post-industrialisation, national traditions, the class system and everyday life all emerge under the broader themes of Work, Rest and Play.