Photographer Tim Walker is preparing for an exhibition at London’s National Portrait Gallery that celebrates LGBTQ+ elders, capturing the lives and legacies of more than 200 individuals from across the queer community. Titled *Tim Walker’s Fairyland: Love and Legends*, the show marks a significant departure from Walker’s earlier fashion work, focusing on portraits of gay, lesbian, and queer activists, artists, writers, doctors, and nurses who specialized in AIDS treatment.
Walker’s project emerged from a desire to document a generation whose experiences span from the early days of gay liberation to the present. While out walking in Highbury Fields, London, he came across a plaque commemorating the first gay liberation march on November 27, 1970 — the same day as his birth. This convergence of personal and historical significance inspired his work to spotlight those who witnessed and contributed to shifting attitudes toward LGBTQ+ rights.
Among the notable figures featured in the series are authors Alan Hollinghurst and Douglas Stuart, actor Ben Whishaw, artist Maggi Hambling, actress Miriam Margolyes, director Francis Lee, and the late director James Ivory, who is now 98. The exhibition also includes members of the Rebel Dykes collective, a group of lesbians active in the 1980s, as well as public intellectual Matthew Parris. Walker’s candid portraits range from formal studio shots to intimate images, such as one of interior designer Nicky Haslam posed nude.
Walker, known for his romantic and whimsical style, spent five years photographing his subjects. He reflects on the resilience and vibrancy of older gay men and women, noting how many in his generation were not expected to grow old due to the AIDS crisis. “What do gay men do when they get old? They live in fabulous houses,” Walker said with humor, but also added seriously, “They exist and they’re alive.” He noted that ten of the subjects he photographed have since passed away, with their surviving partners invited to the exhibition’s opening.
Born in 1970, Walker grew up in Surrey in a stable household, where his parents were happily married. His early interest in photography was sparked by “nicking” his brother’s camera and capturing images of the natural world. He credits childhood influences such as Margaret Tarrant’s fairy illustrations and stories like *Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland* for shaping his imaginative vision.
However, his adolescence was marked by hardship. Attending boarding school in the 1980s, a period associated with heightened homophobia and the onset of the AIDS epidemic, Walker faced bullying and isolation. He kept his sexuality hidden, describing his school environment as “very gothic and heavy.” Despite these challenges, he nurtured daydreams of freedom and creativity that propelled him forward.
After leaving school, Walker initially worked cataloguing the Cecil Beaton archive at Condé Nast before pursuing formal education in photography at Exeter College of Art and Design. His rise to prominence in the 1990s saw him embrace fairy-tale imagery and theatrical storytelling, in contrast to the prevailing grunge aesthetic of the decade.
The upcoming exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery offers a poignant reflection on his own journey and the broader history of LGBTQ+ communities, capturing the stories of those who helped pave the way for greater visibility and acceptance over the past half-century.