During the last few months this film has been doing the national and international rounds of venues, festivals and cinemas . Looking forward to joining panel discussions on some of its upcoming versions in 2026.
Framing New Brighton - a film by @dylancubbin about 3 Photographers who’ve photographed the iconic Merseyside seaside resort of New Brighton over the last 4 decades:
Tom Wood, Ken Grant and Alex Hurst.
.
@tomwoodarchive@kengrantinfo@alexhurstphoto
#newbrighton #film #documentary #filmmaker #photography documentaryphotography analogue 1980s 1990s
‘Cwm - The Fair Country’ - the most recent book by Ken Grant has been published by RRB Photobooks as a limited edition. The book is available via @rrbphotobooks .
“For nearly thirty years Ken has photographed the South Wales Valleys. His images record the gradual post-industrial transition of the landscape and the communities weathering change—watched by the steadfast ponies who have populated the hills for millennia. Grant embarked quietly on this series in the mid-1990s, in parallel to his more widely-seen photographs depicting urban working class life in his native Liverpool. Although visually dissimilar, both sets of work are connected by the themes of labour and endurance.
The title Cwm means valley or corrie in Welsh and steep-sided valleys form the backbone of the images in this new book. The valleys are typically aligned by nature in parallel, running north to south. With the advent of industry in the area in the 19th century, urban and industrial development began to snake in ribbons along the floors of the valleys. Grant’s photographs—taken in locations across the region, including Beaufort, Ebbw Vale and Fochriw—show the green of the hills disrupted by artery-like roads and concrete bridges and rows of workers’ terraced houses; a hill studded in canvas to keep a former coal tip from landslide and tragedy; a playground standing firm as the steel plant that once surrounded it is dismantled. Wild ponies inhabit many of the landscapes and have witnessed what industry did to the Welsh valleys and its people over centuries. Collectively the photographs in Cwm create a singular and layered account of a much photographed region—foregrounding beauty, scars and the life that persist despite the weight of an industry’s passing”.
#kengrant #cwm #thefaircountry #photobook #rrbphotobooks #wales #southwelshvalleys
@kengrantinfo@rrbphotobooks
For this May Northern Narratives Producer @tracymarshallgrant1 is working with the Welsh series of images by Ken Grant. She’s begun with selections from the 2025 publication ‘Cwm - The Fair Country’ -published by RRB Photobooks.
“I’ve selected these images as a very apt place to begin. Ken and I moved right into the heart of the stunning South Welsh valleys for 4 years for this work to be completed so I feel I lived and breathed these very special pictures and this very special place every day.”
For nearly thirty years Ken has photographed the South Wales Valleys. His images record the gradual post-industrial transition of the landscape and the communities weathering change—watched by the steadfast ponies who have populated the hills for millennia. Grant embarked quietly on this series in the mid-1990s, in parallel to his more widely-seen photographs depicting urban working class life in his native Liverpool. Although visually dissimilar, both sets of work are connected by the themes of labour and endurance.
The title Cwm means valley or corrie in Welsh and steep-sided valleys form the backbone of the images in this new book. The valleys are typically aligned by nature in parallel, running north to south. With the advent of industry in the area in the 19th century, urban and industrial development began to snake in ribbons along the floors of the valleys. Grant’s photographs—taken in locations across the region, including Beaufort, Ebbw Vale and Fochriw—show the green of the hills disrupted by artery-like roads and concrete bridges and rows of workers’ terraced houses; a hill studded in canvas to keep a former coal tip from landslide and tragedy; a playground standing firm as the steel plant that once surrounded it is dismantled. Wild ponies inhabit many of the landscapes and have witnessed what industry did to the Welsh valleys and its people over centuries. Collectively the photographs in Cwm create a singular and layered account of a much photographed region—foregrounding beauty, scars and the life that persist despite the weight of an industry’s passing.
Cwm is available via @rrbphotobooks@kengrantinfo #welshvalleys #cwm
New Brighton Spring Tide c.1994 - from Northern Narratives ongoing project with the Ken Grant archive. This picture is one from the early Merseyside series.
#archive #photography #earlywork #merseyside #kengrant
@kengrantinfo
I was so sorry to get the news about Martin Parr this morning. His presence, friendship and encouragement has stretched across my lifetime - as I know it has for so many of us- and his love for photography has totally changed everything. From the way it’s flourished through the book form, to the way photography in Britain is now better appreciated at home and across the world, he was at the heart of so much good, and for that and a whole lot more I’ll always be grateful. Another friend just left me a text message saying ‘we were blessed to know him’, and he’s right. Sending love and condolences to Susie, Ellen, and love to all at Martin’s Foundation. #martinparr photograph: Martin Parr, New Brighton, 1979
