A PHOTOGRAPH of Liverpool dockers taken in the 1960s has been celebrated as one of the defining images of Northern life in the last 100 years.
The picture by photograph-er Colin Jones is taking centre stage in a new exhib-ition, The Myth of the North.
It was taken in 1963 by Jones, a former ballet dancer who became bored hanging around and took up the camera.
As a result, he became one of the most important reportage photographers in the 1960s and 1970s, when his work appeared regularly in numerous Sunday newspaper supplements.
Bill Longshaw, who has created the exhibition, thinks the dockers image has been influential in creating an indelible image of Northern England upon the entire nation’s consciousness.
He believes it to be one of the most important Northern cultural images created in the 20th century.
He explains: “We chose the Liverpool dockers shot because it captures the true spirit and grit of Northern working life that has become synonymous with the region.
“Some people may think that it represents working class clichés or stereotypes – but this exhibition is about how people looked, what they did and how they lived.
“It symbolises the blood, sweat and tears of hard-working men and women from across the region.”
The show is held at The Lowry, Salford Quays, from June 30 until November 7.
