Photojournalist for The Observer newspaper Jane Bown (1925 - 2014) is being celebrated at the Newlands House Gallery in Petworth.

You might not know her name but you will recognise her black and white portrait photographs of well known people at this new exhibition, Jane Bown: Play Shadow.

It is 100 years since Jane Bown's birth and she has snapped everyone there was too in her six decades at The Observer. Sitters include the late Queen Elizabeth II to Samuel Beckett, from the Beatles to Robert Redford, from Bjork to Mick Jagger.

The gallery's director Dr Loucia Manopoulou talks to Noni Needs about this extraordinary unassuming female photographer with an international reputation.

Dr Manopoulou said: "The exhibition is curated through a cultural lens of her work. It is people she photographed that shaped our culture in one way or another; poets, artists, authors, actors, singers and photographers. It captures the magic of Jane Bown."

It is a stunning, must see exhibition set in a Georgian townhouse in Petworth and a great way to spend a couple of hours. Afterwards grab a cuppa and a bite in its covered courtyard.

"Some people take pictures, I find them", said Jane Bown.

Jane Bown used simple equipment, an Olympus OM-1 camera carried in a wicker basket, with just two lenses: an 85mm for close-up portraits and a 55mm, preferring natural light. Taking very few rolls of film to effortlessly capturing the essence of her sitter

"She shot in black and white because colour was too noisy. She knew exactly what she was doing," said Dr Manopoulou.

The exhibition opened on November 1, and runs to February 15, 2026 .

For more information go to the Newlands House Gallery website.

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