Murray Thompson is an Australian monochrome photographer whose practice has developed over more than six decades. His interest in photography began at the age of eighteen, when he bought his first 35mm camera, a Flash Reflector, together with a small flashbulb unit.
His earliest photographs were informal records of friends, families and everyday life. In the early 1960s, Murray upgraded to a Voigtländer Besamatic camera and electronic flash, gradually becoming more serious about the photographic process.
Later, while travelling overseas before retirement, he purchased a Nikon 601 with a dedicated flash. This marked a renewed commitment to photography. Murray joined a camera club and initially worked with colour prints and transparencies, but the expense and limitations of commercial processing encouraged him to build his own darkroom and concentrate on monochrome printing.
Murray has been a member of the Fine Monochrome Print Group since its formation more than twenty years ago. His work has explored a wide range of subjects and photographic themes, with abstraction becoming an increasingly important part of his practice. As he has grown older, changes in time, mobility and perspective have influenced the way he photographs, leading him toward more distilled and interpretive images.
His work reflects a long-standing commitment to observation, craftsmanship and the expressive possibilities of monochrome photography.
Artist’s Viewing Room: Imaginings
Image: Murray Thompson