Ian Dickson
The Music Photo Gallery · Represented Photographer
100+ Works ·50+

Ian Dickson

B. British photographer · Rock Photography · 1970s–1980s ·50+
Ian Dickson
Portrait of the photographer
Biography

Ian Dickson is one of the most notable rock photographers of the 1970s. Ian was raised in a Scots shipbuilding town on Glasgow’s western border. In 1963—just as the Beatles found fame—his family moved to Newcastle upon Tyne in the north-east of England, where he caught the photography bug. A chance meeting with the manager of Newcastle’s leading concert venue in 1972 launched his lifelong career as a professional music photographer.

Ian’s work has been featured in Rolling Stone, Sounds, New Music Express, Q, and is on display as part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s permanent collection. In 1994, a selection of his work was shown at the MTV Awards in Berlin, at the Brit Awards at Alexandra Palace and at the World Music Awards in Monte Carlo and Copenhagen.

Ian now lives with his wife Shoko, son Louis, and daughter Koyuki in the English south-coast seaside town of Brighton, where he is taking life at a more leisurely pace. He is concentrating on marketing his back catalog online and in galleries around the world—an exercise he regards as “phase two” of his rock music photography career.

Selected Works

From the archive.

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Freddie Mercury - Queen
Freddie Mercury - Queen
Ian Dickson From$1,250
Anthony Kiedis, Hamburg, 1992
Anthony Kiedis,  Hamburg, 1992
Ian Dickson From$1,250
Joey Ramone performing live, London 1978, photographed by Ian Dickson.
Joey Ramone,  London, 1978 (1)
Ian Dickson From$1,300
Ramones performing live, London 1978, photographed by Ian Dickson.
Ramones,  London, 1978
Ian Dickson From$1,300
Johnny Ramone, London 1978, photographed by Ian Dickson.
Johnny Ramone,  London, 1978 (1)
Ian Dickson From$1,300
Ramones standing in front of a tour bus, Liverpool, 1977, photographed by Ian Dickson.
Ramones,  Liverpool, 1977
Ian Dickson From$1,300
Publications

Books

Monographs, catalogues and photography books from the archive.

Flash Bang Wallop: Pictures from the Punk Explosion

Flash Bang Wallop: Pictures from the Punk Explosion

Ian Dickson
Creation Books · 2004

This book contains 200 black and white original photographs including many classic location pictures. Some of the artists that appear in the book include: Johnny Thunders, Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Sex Pistols, The Damned, The Clash, Blondie, The Police, The Jam, Patti Smith, The Ramones, Tom Robinson, Elvis Costello and many more. Ian Dickson has worked with most of the major artists in the world, including Led Zeppelin, Marc Bolan, Paul McCartney, Rod Stewart and The Faces. This book contains his classic punk rock photographs.

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Selected Press

In the press.

GQ

How the Ramones became punk pioneers

In 1974, four misfits formed a band whose blitzkrieg bop would make the music world sit up and listen. The Ramones’ dropout attitude and ferocious anthems made them icons and GQ was there in the front row. 1-2-3-4...

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British Journal of Photography

New Exhibition Celebrates 40 Years Since the Birth of Punk

The exhibition comprises of 40 images taken by Ian Dickson and Kevin Cummins.
Each image documents the energy of the early years of the movement from 1976 to 1979 in cities  including London, Manchester, and Liverpool.
The exhibition, titledPhoto-punk: 40 Images From the Birth of Punk, captures the atmosphere of the scene through imagery of bands and their fans across the UK.

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