11 May Derek Jarman at the B2 Gallery Wapping London 1981

This picture was taken one evening at B2 Gallery, Wapping in 1981. Derek was showing a few Super 8 films. Gallery Director David Dawson had just curated the show ART AND ARTIFICE: a mixed media show including photographs by Karen Knoor, Andrew Cameron and Olivier Richon: ‘Photographs of the New Romantics’ and works by Vivienne Westwood, Derek Jarman (film show with improvised live soundtrack including interviews and record changes), John Maybury, Michael Kostiff, Andrew Logan, Sheila Rock.
Earlier that year David had exhibited Robert Mapplethorpe’s work,  he the first to do so in the UK. I was staying in the adjacent studio wharf with friends Jake and Cass ( Cass’s  dad owned the wharf.)  B2 overlooked the Thames and had a large drawbridge style door that would’ve been for loading goods and this  became a sort of roof terrace when it was down.  You take this kind of glamorous privilege for granted when young but looking back it was a remarkable situation.    As David was a friend we stayed in his gallery often as it was more comfortable than our wharf, often flopping under a Mapplethorpe S&M portrait. Debbie Harry came to do a talk once. The place was swamped and but all I could see was the top of her head above a sea of security and entourage.