Fay Godwin (17 February 1931 – 27 May 2005) was a British photographer known for her

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white to produce a range of achromatic brightnesses of grey. It is also known as greyscale in technical settings. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, ...

landscapes of the British countryside and coast.

Career

Godwin was introduced to the London literary scene.Obituary: Fay Godwin
from ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' via FindArticles She produced portraits of dozens of well-known writers, photographing almost every significant literary figure in 1970s and 1980s England, as well as numerous visiting foreign authors.Fay Godwin archive saved for the nation
,

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...

, 7 May 2008. Her subjects, typically photographed in the sitters' own homes, included

Kingsley Amis Sir Kingsley William Amis (16 April 1922 – 22 October 1995) was an English novelist, poet, critic and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, short stories, radio and television scripts, and works of social crit ...

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Margaret Drabble Dame Margaret Drabble, Lady Holroyd, (born 5 June 1939) is an English biographer, novelist and short story writer. Drabble's books include '' The Millstone'' (1965), which won the following year's John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize, and '' Je ...

Günter Grass Günter Wilhelm Grass (; 16 October 1927 – 13 April 2015) was a German novelist, poet, playwright, illustrator, graphic artist, sculptor, and recipient of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature. He was born in the Free City of Danzig (now Gda ...

Ted Hughes Edward James Hughes (17 August 1930 – 28 October 1998) was an English poet, translator, and children's writer. Critics frequently rank him as one of the best poets of his generation and one of the twentieth century's greatest writers. He wa ...

Clive James Clive James (born Vivian Leopold James; 7 October 1939 – 24 November 2019) was an Australian critic, journalist, broadcaster, writer and lyricist who lived and worked in the United Kingdom from 1962 until his death in 2019.Philip Larkin Philip Arthur Larkin (9 August 1922 – 2 December 1985) was an English poet, novelist, and librarian. His first book of poetry, '' The North Ship'', was published in 1945, followed by two novels, '' Jill'' (1946) and '' A Girl in Winter'' (194 ...

Doris Lessing Doris May Lessing ( Tayler; 22 October 1919 – 17 November 2013) was a British novelist. She was born to British parents in Qajar Iran, Persia, where she lived until 1925. Her family then moved to Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), where ...

Robert Lowell Robert Traill Spence Lowell IV (; March 1, 1917 – September 12, 1977) was an American poet. He was born into a Boston Brahmin family that could trace its origins back to the ''Mayflower''. His family, past and present, were important subjects ...

Edna O'Brien Josephine Edna O'Brien (15 December 1930 – 27 July 2024) was an Irish novelist, memoirist, playwright, poet and short-story writer. O'Brien's works often revolve around the inner feelings of women and their problems relating to men and soc ...

Anthony Powell Anthony Dymoke Powell ( ; 21 December 1905 – 28 March 2000) was an English novelist best known for his 12-volume work '' A Dance to the Music of Time'', published between 1951 and 1975. It is on the list of longest novels in English. Powell ...

Salman Rushdie Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie ( ; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British and American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern wor ...

Jean Rhys Jean Rhys, ( ; born Ella Gwendoline Rees Williams; 24 August 1890 – 14 May 1979) was a novelist who was born and grew up in the Caribbean island of Dominica. From the age of 16, she resided mainly in England, where she was sent for her educa ...

, and

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. After the publication of her first books—''Rebecca the Lurcher'' (1973) and ''The Oldest Road: An Exploration of the Ridgeway'' (1975), co-authored with J.R.L. Anderson—she was a prolific publisher, working mainly in the landscape tradition to great acclaim and becoming the nation's best-known landscape photographer. ''The Oldest Road'' sold over 25,000 copies. Her work was informed by the sense of ecological crisis present in late 1970s and 1980s England. In the 1990s she was offered a Fellowship at the National Museum of Photography, Film and Television (now the

National Media Museum The National Science and Media Museum (formerly The National Museum of Photography, Film & Television, 1983–2006 and then the National Media Museum, 2006–2017), located in Bradford, West Yorkshire, is part of the national Science Museum ...

) in Bradford, which pushed her work in the direction of colour and urban documentary. She also began taking close-ups of natural forms. A major exhibition of that work was toured by

Warwick Arts Centre Warwick Arts Centre is a multi-venue arts complex at the University of Warwick in Coventry, England. It attracts around 300,000 visitors a year to over 3,000 individual events embracing all types of theatre and performance, contemporary and ...

from 1995 to 1997; Godwin self-published a small book of that work in 1999, titled ''Glassworks & Secret Lives,'' which was distributed from a small local bookshop in her adopted hometown of

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

in East Sussex.

Published work

The first edition of ''Remains of

Elmet Elmet (), sometimes Elmed or Elmete, was an independent Brittonic Celtic Cumbric-speaking kingdom between about the 4th century and mid-7th century. The people of Elmet survived as a distinctly recognised Brittonic Celtic group for centuri ...

: A Pennine Sequence'', her book collaboration with poet

, was published by Rainbow Press in 1979. The book was also published in popular form by

Faber and Faber Faber and Faber Limited, commonly known as Faber & Faber or simply Faber, is an independent publishing house in London. Published authors and poets include T. S. Eliot (an early Faber editor and director), W. H. Auden, C. S. Lewis, Margaret S ...

(with poor reproduction of the images), and then re-published by them in 1994 simply as ''Elmet'' with a third of the book being new additional poems and photographs. Hughes called the 1994 ''Elmet'' the "definitive" edition. She also said, in a 2001 interview, that this was the book she would like to be most remembered for. In an obituary for ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', art critic

Ian Jeffrey Ian Jeffrey is an English art historian, writer and curator. Jeffrey is the author of a series of illustrated books on the history of photography. He is a recipient of the Royal Photographic Society's J. Dudley Johnston Award. Life and work Jef ...

called her 1985 book ''Land,'' the "book for which she will be most remembered", and described it:

Designed by Ken Garland, it is stylish in the classic mode, but what sets ''Land'' apart is the care that Fay gave to the combining and sequencing of its pictures. Working with contact prints on a board, she put together a picture of Britain as ancient terrain—stony, windswept and generally worn down by the elements.... workin the neo-romantic tradition...
hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...
gives an oddly desolate account of Britain, as if reporting on a long abandoned country.Ian Jeffrey,
Fay Godwin: Photographic chronicler of our changing natural world
(obituary), ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', 31 May 2005.

Godwin's last major retrospective was at the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London, England, and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings a ...

, London in 2001. A retrospective book, ''Landmarks'', was published by

Dewi Lewis Dewi Lewis (born Denbigh, Wales, 10 March 1951) is a publisher and curator of photography. Career In 1975, Lewis was the founding director of the Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury Metropolitan Arts Association which operates The Met (arts centre), ...

in 2002.

Awards and recognition

Godwin was the subject of a documentary, broadcast on ''

The South Bank Show ''The South Bank Show'' is a British television arts magazine series originally produced by London Weekend Television and broadcast on ITV between 1978 and 2010. A new version of the series began 27 May 2012 on Sky Arts. Conceived, written, a ...

'' on 9 November 1986. She was awarded an honorary fellowship of the

Royal Photographic Society The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, commonly known as the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), is the world's oldest photographic society having been in continuous existence since 1853. It was founded in London, England, in 1853 as th ...

in 1990 and had a major retrospective at the

in London in 2001.

Personal life

Godwin was born Fay Simmonds in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, Germany, the daughter of Sidney Simmonds, a British diplomat, and Stella MacLean, an American artist. She attended nine different schools before beginning a career as a travel representative. She moved to London in the 1950s. She married publisher

Tony Godwin Anthony Richard James Wylie Godwin (17 December 1919 – 15 March 1976) was an influential British publisher of the 1960s/1970s. His contribution to the publishing industry is recognized in the form of the Tony Godwin Memorial Trust. Born in Ledb ...

in 1961; the couple had two sons, Jeremy and Nicholas. They split up in 1969 and later divorced. Godwin was less active in her final years; in a December 2004 interview for ''

Practical Photography ''Practical Photography'' was a UK monthly photography magazine published by the Bauer Media Group since it was acquired from EMAP in 2008. Established in 1959, It ceased publishing on 2 June 2020 following Bauer Publishing's decision to stop p ...

'', she blamed "the

NHS The National Health Service (NHS) is the term for the publicly funded health care, publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care (Northern ...

. They ruined my life by using some drugs with adverse affects 'sic''that wrecked my heart. The result is that I haven't the energy to walk very far." Godwin died on 27 May 2005, in

, England at the age of 74. After her death, the

Ramblers' Association The Ramblers' Association, branded simply as the Ramblers, is Great Britain's walking charity. The Ramblers is also a membership organisation with around 100,000 members and a network of volunteers who maintain and protect the path network. T ...

, an organisation led by Godwin from 1987 to 1990, described her presidency as a time when its "long-running right-to-roam campaign was turned up to the full-strength pressure which ultimately resulted in the access provisions enshrined in the

Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (c. 37), also known as the CRoW Act and "Right to Roam" Act, is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament affecting England and Wales which came into force on 30 November 2000. Right to roam The Act impleme ...

and the

Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 is an Act of the Scottish Parliament which establishes statutory public rights of access to land and makes provisions under which bodies representing rural and crofting communities may buy land. Provisions ...

."Fay Godwin, former President of the Ramblers' Association, has died
, from the

website Godwin's archive, including approximately 11,000 exhibition prints, the entire contents of her studio, and correspondence with some of her subjects, was given to the

Publications

*''Rebecca the Lurcher.'' Barrie & Jenkins 1973. With Andrew Simpson.. *''The Oldest Road: An Exploration of the Ridgeway.'' 1975. With J.R.L. Anderson. *''Remains of Elmet.'' Rainbow Press, 1979. With poems by

. **''Remains of Elmet.''

, 1979. . **''Elmet.'' Faber and Faber, 1994. With new additional poems and photographs. **''Remains of Elmet.'' Faber and Faber, 2011. . *''The Saxon Shore Way.''

Hutchinson (publisher) Hutchinson Heinemann is a British publishing firm founded in 1887. It is currently an imprint which is ultimately owned by Bertelsmann, the German publishing conglomerate. History Hutchinson Heinemann began as Hutchinson & Co. (Publishers) Ltd ...

, 1983. With

Alan Sillitoe Alan Sillitoe FRSL (4 March 192825 April 2010) was an English writer and one of the so-called " angry young men" of the 1950s. He disliked the label, as did most of the other writers to whom it was applied. He is best known for his debut novel ...

. . *''Land.'' Heinemann, 1985. With

John Fowles John Robert Fowles (; 31 March 1926 – 5 November 2005) was an English novelist, critically positioned between modernism and postmodernism. His work was influenced by Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus, among others. After leaving Oxford Uni ...

. . *''Glassworks & Secret Lives.'' Stella Press 1999. . *''Landmarks: A Survey''

, 2001. . With an introduction by

Simon Armitage Simon Robert Armitage (born 26 May 1963) is an English poet, playwright, musician and novelist. He was appointed Poet Laureate on 10 May 2019. He is professor of poetry at the University of Leeds. He has published over 20 collections of poetr ...

and an essay by Roger Taylor. *''Our'' ''Forbidden Land.'' Jonathan Cape 1990. *''Islands.'' Jonathan Cape 1978. With John Fowles. *''The Secret Forest of Dean'', Redcliffe Press 1986. *''Glassworks and Secret Lives,'' Stella Press 1999. With Ian Jeffrey. *''Bison at Chalk Farm''. Routlege & Kegan Paul 1982. *''Romney Marsh and the Royal Military Canal.'' Wildwood House 1980. With Richard Ingrams. *''The Whisky Roads of Scotland.'' Norman & Hobhouse 1982. With Derek Cooper. *''The Edge of the Land'', Jonathan Cape 1995. *''The Oldest Road, an exploration of the Ridgeway.'' Whitlett Books 1987. With J.R.L. Anderson. *''Thorne Moors''. Sumach Press 1991. With Catherine Caufield. *''The Drovers' Roads of Wales.'' Wildwood House 1977. With Shirley Toulson. *''This Scepter'd Isle, Shakespeare in Praise of Britaiin.'' Souvenir Press 1989. *''The Countryside we want: A manifesto for the year 2000''. Green Books.1987. *''Wessex: A National Trust Book,'' Hamish Hamilton 1985. With Patricia Beer, *''Tess the story of a Guide Dog,'' Gollancz 1981 With Peter Purves. *Oil Rush. Quartet Books 1976. With Mervyn Jones.

References

External links

*
Searchable Gallery of Fay Godwin images

Fay Godwin archive at the British Library

Fay Godwin
a June 2003 episode of ''

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'' from

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(

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br>streaming audio available
{{DEFAULTSORT:Godwin, Fay 1931 births 2005 deaths British portrait photographers English women photographers British landscape photographers People from Hastings Photographers from Berlin Photographers from Sussex Walkers of the United Kingdom