'It's amazing being back in Nottingham 50 years on'

When John Dean first came to Nottingham in 1976, little did he know snapshots he took of his stay would form the centre of an exhibition in the city 50 years later.

At the time the Baltimore-based photographer was studying at Nottingham Polytechnic - which went on to become Nottingham Trent University (NTU) - for one term, and used his time to explore the area and take pictures of local sights and characters.

An exhibition of his images opened at Bonington Gallery earlier this month, with Dean taking the time to visit the show in person.

Its director said he was delighted to help arrange "a reunion of sorts".

When Dean began digitising his collection he emailed some of his photos from his Nottingham visit over to NTU, and was then offered his own exhibition.

He said it "feels amazing" to be back in Nottingham after half a century away, with his return bringing back memories of how he persuaded people to pose for pictures.

"I recognise a few things - some of the buildings that are still standing," he said.

"As a tourist - as a guy that spoke a little differently, and looked a little different - I just would say 'excuse me, hello, I'm here', I would tell my story, and then they would be so happy to talk to me, and I would take their picture.

"It was just magical in terms of how I met people."

Tom Godfrey, director of Bonington Gallery, said the exhibition showed "lots of stories and narratives" from Nottingham's recent past.

"Not only are these photographs giving an amazing social history of the city, but they're showing the characters and the folk who lived here all those years ago," he said.

"It's incredible, [and] it speaks to the power of artistic practice and creativity."

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