Photie Man: 50 Years of Tom Wood - nostalgic images of Liverpool life on show at Walker Art Gallery

A new major photographic exhibition at the Walker Art Gallery celebrates the work of internationally-acclaimed artist Tom Wood and his iconic images of Merseyside over five decades.

The Irish photographer moved to Liverpool in 1978. Known locally as ‘Photie Man’ he dedicated much of his career to the people and places of the region to create an intimate, diverse and knowing portrait of Liverpool and the surrounding area.

With studies ranging from inside a nightclub in New Brighton to his series on board the region’s buses, Woods’s pioneering photographs capture a definitive phase in the social and political history of the region.

Head of the Walker Art Gallery, Charlotte Keenan McDonald, said: "Tom always really valued the people that he worked with that created these pictures with him. He used to carry around a box of prints and give them out when he saw people again. He's lost touch with some people or maybe never saw some people again anyway, so he's really keen to get in touch with people, and so are we here at the Walker.

“So we're asking visitors to get in touch with us, scan the QR code at the end of the exhibition, and tell us what picture you've seen yourself in. Hopefully, we can come together and celebrate. Tom is Interested in maybe working with people again to take photographs of them today."

The exhibition also explores Wood's never-before-seen film work. Photie Man: 50 Years of Tom Wood is at the Walker Art Gallery until Sunday, 7 Jan 2024.

• Watch the video at the top of this page for a full preview of the exhibition and more from the head of the gallery.