Janette Beckman | British Subculture 1970s-80s

Janette Beckman’s work has spanned more than five decades, as a portrait and documentary photographer she captured the rise of punk in seventies London, as well as soundsystem culture, skinhead, ska and mod revival movements during the onset of Thatcher’s Britain.

Growing up in North London Janette was surrounded by art & culture from a young age. Enrolling on a course at Saint Martins; she initially had visions of becoming a portrait artist like David Hockney, though she never thought her drawings were good enough. Eventually she decided to study photography at The London College of Printing.

After leaving college she taught photography for a while before landing a job working for magazines Melody Maker and later The Face – photographing everyone from The Sex Pistols, The Clash, Siouxsie Sioux and The Specials.

Mod Revival in Streatham, 1979.
Mod Revival in Streatham, 1979.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Mod Revival in Streatham, 1979.
Mod Revival in Streatham, 1979.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Ska Girls, Aylesbury, 1980.
Ska Girls, Aylesbury, 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Boy, London, 1970s.
Boy, London, 1970s.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Punk Girl, 1970s.
Punk Girl, London, 1970s.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Sid Vicious Memorial, 1980.
Sid Vicious Memorial, 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

“Punk is an irrepressible attitude. It brought an anti-establishment, raw freshness to music, art, and style. It was about change, the idea that people should question authority and take action themselves.” – Janette Beckman.

Sid Vicious Memorial, 1980.
Sid Vicious Memorial, 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Sid Vicious Memorial, 1980.
Sid Vicious Memorial, 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Punks in London, circa 1979.
Punks in London, circa 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Coventry Punk, 1979.
Coventry Punk, 1979.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Mod Revival in Streatham, 1979.
Ladbroke Grove, 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

The Islington Twins, 1980.
The Islington Twins, 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Ladbroke Grove Sound System, 1980.
Ladbroke Grove Sound System.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Punk Girls Hyde Park, London, 1970s.
Punk Girls, Hyde Park, London, 1977.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Young Jam Fans, 1980.
Young Jam Fans, 1980.

Photo © Janette Beckman.

Gallery first published June 30th, 2020. © Janette Beckman / British Culture Archive. All rights reserved.

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All images © Janette Beckman, all rights reserved. No usage or reproduction of any kind without prior permission of the copyright holder.

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