An avid photographer throughout his life, it was David Malcolmson’s dream to have an exhibition in his local museum, The Stirling Smith.  Son of a Miner sees this wish come to fruition with an exhibition of street photography depicting life in 1960s and 70s Stirling and London.

David was a proud son of the rock, born and raised in Stirling. His curiosity in literature, music, and art took him to London and Newcastle where he worked as a civil servant. Despite this migration, he always viewed himself as a miner’s son from St Ninians.

David became seriously interested in photography in his late teens and went on to study at the London Film School and the University of Newcastle. He was drawn to the photography of people because he ‘had an unconscious desire to record something of the human condition.’ He was referring to the shared experiences, emotions, and challenges that are common to people regardless of background. These photographs are captured in black and white, as David felt that colour proved to be a distraction in street art photography.

Although David sadly passed away in 2022, his sense of wonder is clearly present in his work as he once explained: ‘I have never quite lost that sense of wonder which is the abiding gift of childhood. It has remained with me through difficult times, and life would be poorer for its absence’.

The Stirling Smith has worked closely with David’s family to identify some of the faces portrayed in his pictures.  We invite visitors to come in and see if they spot any familiar faces in the snapshots that David captured.