The Museum of Youth Culture, based in Surrey Quays, has opened a pop-up shop in Carnaby Street, the spiritual heart of London’s youth, where an exhibition of some of the best images from their archive of photos are on display, writes Michael Holland.
The exhibition, A Way of Life, includes a photo of a young woman with her motorbike in the 1920s right up to recent Extinction Rebellion protestors blocking traffic in order to get their message across about climate change, with everything in between – Mods, Rockers, Punks, Skinheads, Suedeheads, Ravers and Rock ‘n’ Rollers are all depicted in the unique garb that made them stand out from the crowd in their 100 years of rebellion. A Way of Life takes you right back to your own personal good-old-days.
The website already has a collection of 1970 photos of members of the Lady Gomm Youth Club in Rotherhithe (https://museumofyouthculture.photoshelter.com/galleries/C0000qZvpZF6.goQ/G0000eUjO_GxycrQ/tony-othen-and-bede-association)
The Museum of Youth Culture is always looking to add to its archive of youth images in order to create the biggest and best collection of the UK’s finest for posterity, so dig out and dust off those old photos of mullets, feather cuts and beehives and send them in. Embrace your old flares and flower-power shirts and share the photos with the world. Who knows, maybe one day you will end up in one of the many exhibitions held around the country, or even in their annual calendar. (Submissions: https://museumofyouthculture.com/submit/)
When you visit you can buy a piece of history in the form of posters and books on the many subcultures that have emerged from the youth over the years.
Museum of Youth Culture, 3 Carnaby Street, London, W1F 9PB, Mon – Saturday: 11am – 6pm; Sunday: 12pm – 6pm