Brian Homer (b.1945) Photographs of Handsworth, Birmingham, 1978-1979.

Brian Homer has been a photographer for over 40 years. In 1979, he collaborated with fellow photographers Derek Bishton and John Reardon on Handsworth Self Portraits, which invited Handsworth residents to photograph themselves. It was a community-based project aimed to challenge media stereotypes and give participants control over their own representation. Along with Bishton and Reardon he co-founded seminal photography magazine Ten8 , an international photography magazine that explored issues of representation and power. He spent a period co-running the WELD community photography project in Birmingham and continues to carry out photography commissions for clients.

Homer’s images of Handsworth were taken in the immediate years leading up to the Handsworth riots in 1981. The riots were a series of disturbances that erupted against a backdrop of economic challenges, racial tensions, and social inequality; the riots were a manifestation of widespread discontent. Sparked by issues such as high unemployment rates and police discrimination, the unrest highlighted the struggles faced by marginalised communities, not just in Handsworth but across several diverse inner-city communities in the UK.