Walter Waygood is renowned for his photographs of life in the Valleys during the 1970s and 1980s.
The images have struck a chord both with those who lived through those times and those wanting a glimpse into the past.
The prolific emergence of these photographs comes after the photographer returned to South Wales after a 20-year exile in Hampshire and a retirement from lecturing.
A return to his spiritual home of Merthyr Tydfil allowed him to edit and archive images taken more than 30 years ago – many never having been seen before.
These striking images were thematically diverse representing culture, industry and society .
However, one of the most intriguing of his collections of work eschews the Valleys for the big city and bright lights of South Wales’ major cities - and in particular, the department store.
The photographer has now resurrected the collection first exhibited at Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff 35 years ago in 1984, and unearthed new images from negatives which he is currently working his way through.
Looking back on the creation of the photographs he recalls the idea behind the images.
“It stemmed from me wanting to do something different,” he says.
“It was such a dramatic change from me from the work I was doing in the valleys. But I was always fascinated with department stores when I was younger. Going to the city was a highlight and an adventure.”
First he went and spoke to the Owen Owen department store in Newport , explaining his idea.
“I showed them my pics of the miners in the valleys and said I wanted to document the store in a similar way. The manager’s response was so positive that I approached other stores and it just snowballed."
He received enthusiastic responses from Allders, British Home Stores, C&A’s, Debenhams, Marks & Spencer and Owen Owen Department Stores. Many of those are names that have now disappeared from the high street, so Waygood’s images serve as a reminder of the retail landscape pre-retail parks and out-of-town shopping destinations.
“A department store is a community in a community,” says the photographer. “The portfolio of pictures illustrated the camaraderie that came out of the workplace.
“Then the city was the place to go but the department store was the destination of discovery that was comprehensively stocked with shops within a shop. Before the Costas of this world it would be the place to meet for coffee or to have lunch without the queue. Before you would be the starched white pinafored waitress writing down your requirements.
“In the past this was our mini shopping mall, our scaled-down retail park.
“This is where there was a personal service where to trust the sales assistant was second to none. After all they were the experts in their field. From Dannimac to Estee Lauder, where merchandise was essentially British, although expensive, it would last forever.”
Having put many of the department store images up on social media, he is enthused by the response to the images.
“The response I’m getting back is phenomenal,” he says. “I’m still rediscovering pictures I took more than 35 years ago. It’s a massive task but so rewarding.”
Find out more about Walter’s work at: www.walterwaygood.com
