Artist Research - Chris Killip

Chris Killip is a British photographer and a Professor of Visual and Environmental Studies at Harvard University from 1991 to 2017. He was born in Douglas, Isle of Man, the United Kingdom, in 1946. When he was sixteen, he left the school to start working as a trainee hotel manager. Two years later, he decided to start working in photography. In London and Paris, Killip has worked for different photographers. As an assistant for a respected photographer, Adrian Flowers, his first role in photography. After that, he became independent and started doing freelancer works as an assistant for other artists. In 1969, following his first photography exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, he decided to travel to the Isle of Man to photograph. Killip stayed in the United Kingdom, and he took many different pictures around the country. The New York gallery owner Lee Witkin commissioned Killip's work for a limited edition portfolio during his return visit in 1971, paying for it in advance so that Killip could continue to photograph. His work is part of permanent collections in different places around the world. Make him an iconic artist from his time. 

Chris Fillip is also known for his symbolic black and white pictures. He had an important role in photography when de-industrialisation started in the UK. “The working class get it in the neck. Basically, they’re the bottom of the pile,” says Chris Killip. He took pictures from those times, and his work became a classic. This series of images, known by In Flagrante released in 1988, was a statement against the prime minister at the time. 

References [online]

Killip, C. (2019) Chris Killip. Available at: https://chriskillip.com/bio.html (Accessed: 26/01/2022).

Smyth, D. (2017) Now Then: Chris Killip and the Making of In Flagrante. Available at: https://www.1854.photography/2017/06/now-then-chris-killip-and-the-making-of-in-flagrante/ (Accessed: 26/01/2022).

Tate (2022) Chris Killip . Available at: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/chris-killip-9241 (Accessed: 26/01/2022).