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Clare Newton
In 2001 Clare Newton was awarded the British Female Inventor of the Year, with 5 international awards for innovation.
Born in Chelsea, Clare’s creative talents started at a young age, first painting her bedroom with Santa’s gift of oil paints - to building wooden aeroplanes. But she was given her first camera, a little Minolta at the age of 14, it inspired her to build a dark room in the roof of her parents house. Here, she taught herself how to shoot and develop photographs, with neighbours encouraging her with little commissions.
Clare took a degree in graphics in East London and worked as a Graphic designer for many years. Photography really took off for her when the Olympics came to London and she made her first large photographic installation in 2009, called ‘Riches Uncovered’. This was a collection of photographic montages to explain and document East London’s disappearing heritage. It was opened in June by the Chairman of City Corporation’s West Ham Park, Honourable Stella Currie.
For over 12 years, British photographer Mandy Barker has dedicated her lens to a critical cause: raising awareness of plastic pollution in our oceans. Her work goes beyond aesthetics; it serves as a powerful call to action. By combining scientific research with fine art photography, Barker portrays the harmful impact of plastic debris on marine life and ourselves. Her haunting images inspire viewers to take responsibility and effect change. One of the most remote places on Earth—Henderson Island in the South Pacific—became a canvas for Mandy's mission. Despite its isolation, this elevated coral atoll is one of the world's most plastic-polluted locations.
There, Barker meticulously documented plastic objects washed ashore, creating visual diaries that complemented scientific research. Her curated montages—such as "Shelf Life" and "Lunasea"—reveal the life cycle of plastic, from supermarket shelves to natural reefs. Through her persistence, Mandy Barker amplifies the urgency of environmental awareness, making her a true change-maker in our quest to protect our beautiful world.