Ikon Studio: photo galleries

All of the 5000 Ikon Studio photos were shot between May and December 1950 in Martin Place, Sydney, and probably represent no more than ten days – or part days – of work.

They were taken from a licenced street photography stand located outside the Prudential Building between Castlereagh and Elizabeth streets, and the backgrounds of the images offer glimpses of this bustling city location either looking up Martin Place towards Macquarie Street or down towards George Street.

Arm in arm

Babes in arms

Family outings

Groups of three

Push prams

Siblings

Singles, second shot

Brown paper packages

Crowded footpaths

In uniform

Caught the photographers eye

Out with dad

Toddler cuteness

Walk then pose

Published on 
Black and white street photograph of three women linking arms standing in the street.

Family photo reunion

Imagine visiting an exhibition and discovering a photograph of yourself and your family that you had never seen before

Black and white photograph of two adults and three children walking in a line holding hands in urban setting. This view is up Martin Place toward Macquarie Street, Sydney.

Ikon Studio

During the public call out for our Street Photography exhibition an extraordinarily rare collection of street photography negatives came to light. The Ikon Studio negatives provide a fascinating visual narrative of the street photographer at work

Ikon Studio archive finding aid

Ikon Studio Archive

The Ikon Studio archive of candid street photography is a documentation of everyday life on one busy Sydney city street recorded over several days in 1950

Black and white street photograph of pedestrians

Snapped! The Ikon Studio street photographer at work

A remarkable acquisition of 5000 street snaps provides a lively and revealing record of one Sydney street in 1950 and offers a rare glimpse through the street photographer’s lens