Professor Tom Hunter
Title
Professor of Photography
College
London College of Communication
Email address
Tags
Researcher Research
Biography
Tom Hunter is an award winning and internationally acclaimed artist. His work has been exhibited nationally and internationally. Tom has earned several awards during his career, including an Honorary Doctorate of the Arts from the University of East London in 2011 for his work documenting the lives of the people of East London and Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society in 2010.Tom graduated from the London College of Printing in 1994 with his work 'The Ghetto', which is now on permanent display at the Museum of London. He studied for his MA at the Royal College of Art, where, in 1996, he was awarded the Photography Prize by Fuji Film for his series ‘Travellers’. In 1998 ‘Woman Reading a Possession Order’ from his series ‘Persons Unknown’, won the John Kobal Photographic Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery.
In 2006 Tom became the only artist to have a solo photography show at the National Gallery for his series ‘Living in Hell and Other Stories’, which talked about Hackney and its relationship to its local paper. His works are in many collections around the world including; MOMA, New York, National Gallery, London, The V&A, London, Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Smithsonian, Washington and the Los Angles County Museum of Art.
Professor Tom Hunter has been working as an artist for the past twenty years, using photography to explore and represent his community and neighbourhood, through its people, architecture and landscape. As part of his continuing work practice he researches and references popular culture, art history and the media representation of both his own local community and the community of the artist throughout history.
Hunter interweaves art history, photographic practice and popular culture to create vibrant, colourful artworks, which illuminate East London. His work seeks to break stereotypes, provoke thought, raise debate and shed light on these communities and the issues they face. Hunter seeks to create a new visual language in fine art practice, which blurs the boundaries between staged photography and documentary. Throughout his career Professor Hunter’s photographic art practice has aimed to question the role of photography in society and to take it into new arenas and to new audiences.
Research Outputs
Art/Design item
- Hunter T. Findings (2013)
- Hunter T. Punch Professors in England (2012)
- Hunter T. A Midsummer Night's Dream (2011)
- Hunter T. The Way Home (2010)
- Hunter T. Hackney Fandango (2009)
- Hunter T. Living in hell and other stories (2006)
- Hunter T. Swan songs series (2004)
- Hunter T. Headlines (2003)
- Hunter T. Thoughts of life and death (2003)
- Hunter T. Life and Death in Hackney (2000)
- Hunter T. Persons unknown (1997)
- Hunter T. Travellers (1996)
- Hunter T. The Ghetto Series (1994)
Article
- Hunter T. Annual Photographer’s Lecture 2013 - Home (2016)
- Hunter T. Princess Toshi (2011)
- Hunter T. Prayer Places features in Portfolio Magazine (2010)
- Hunter T, Smyth D. Think global, act local (2010)
- Hunter T, Pulver A. Tom Hunter's best shot (2009)
Book Section
- Hunter T, Read S, Simmons M. Photographers and Research, the role of research in contemporary photographic practice (2016)
Conference, Symposium or Workshop item
- Hunter T. Home (2014)
- Hunter T. Caravaggio yesterday and today: art, genius and legend (2011)
- Hunter T, Pickering S, Shafran N, Chandler D. Panel Discussion: Theatres of the Real (2010)
Other
- Hunter T, May J. Tom Hunter. The Essay, Under the Influence (2011)
Show/Exhibition
- Hunter T. Figures in a Landscape (2018)
- Hunter T. The English Riviera (2017)
- Hunter T. Flaneur in an Ancient Landscape (2017)
- Hunter T. Searching for Ghosts (2017)
- Hunter T. Winterville (2016)
- Hunter T. a side show of a side show (2015)
- Williams V, Hunter T. Life on the Road (2014)
- Hunter T. The Way Home (2012)
- Hunter T. I promise to love you (2011)
- Davidmann S, Lowe P, Hunter T, Moore D, Skelton P, Sutherland P. Photography and the archive research centre core members exhibition (2011)
- Hunter T. Community Halls (2010)
- Hunter T. A palace for us (2010)
- Hunter T. Unheralded Stories (2010)
- Hunter T. Prayer places (2010)
- Hunter T. Persons Unknown (2010)
- Hunter T. Murder, two men wanted (2010)
- Hunter T. The Ghetto (2010)
- Hunter T. Flashback (2009)
Teaching
Current research students
- Sarah McAdam, Art in the Home: an ethnographic study within domestic spaces that explores the relationships between the domestic space of the home, owner and the art within it. (Lead supervisor)