The Launderette

145 Cheltenham Rd, Cotham, Bristol BS6 5RR

16 Oct to
17 Nov 2024

Thu - Sun
11am to 5pm

Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Herbert Shergold operated a commercial photography studio in Bristol, using glass plate negatives – an unusually antiquated technique popular in the 1910s – to create highly stylised portraits of actors as well as of his local community. In Shergold’s studio, Bristol’s working class residents were styled to appear as Hollywood film stars. Yet little is known of Shergold. After his death, his images largely disappeared from view, falling into the possession of private collectors in the U.S., The Netherlands, as well as Bristol. From the latter collection, curator and photo historian Hedy van Erp has curated the first known exhibition of Shergold’s work. This exhibition takes place close to the site of his original studio and is supported by Marcel Brent (Vintage Photographs) and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

About Hedy Van Erp

Hedy van Erp is a Dutch photo historian, author and curator of photography and video art. She develops exhibitions and concepts for museums, galleries and photo festivals. She has curated exhibitions for, among others, the Nederlands Fotomuseum, Rotterdam; Photo Museum The Hague, the English National Media Museum; the Science Museum, London; the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Museum Kranenburgh, the National Maritime Museum and the Hermitage in Amsterdam. Supported by the Mondriaan Fund, Van Erp researched Dutch photo archives in private collections in 2023.

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