Gypsy Roma and Traveller History Month

An exhibition celebrating Gypsy Roma and Traveller History Month.

About the Exhibition

This is our June 2023 exhibition of photographs, archive materials, books, and films relating to Gypsy Roma and Traveller histories and cultures. It can be found in our exhibition space under the main Library staircase for the first half of the month.

It features the Appleby Horse Fair photographs of Brian Morgan MA, MBA, who is a fine art photographer and Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society. His Visual Essays on Gypsy and Circus Culture have previously been short-listed in the RPS International Photographic Awards 2020 and 2021. He also has a forthcoming book entitled ¡®The Road to Appleby Fair’: A ÐßÐßÊÓƵ of Romany Gypsy Culture.

He “uses photography as a visual narrative for illuminating the life stories of those people who for economic, political, and social reasons find themselves cast to the periphery of society. He also seeks to illuminate the life stories of those whose worlds are for other reasons obscured from sight of the mainstream. His creative vision is forged in the idea that all of our lives are diminished by lack of inclusion and that every opportunity should be taken to use art as a bridge between having and not having, between ¡®knowing’ and ¡®not knowing’.”

More of the stunning work featured here can be seen at:

and in ¡®Appleby Horse Fair: A Photo Essay’ here:

A photograph of two men standing next to three horses and two canvas covered caravans.
Photograph by Brian Morgan https://www.life-framer.com/photographer/brian-morgan/

Gypsy Roma and Traveller History Month

Established in June 2008, the purposes of Gypsy Roma and Traveller History Month (GRTHM) are to raise awareness of the lives of traveller communities in the UK, to dispel misconceptions, to combat prejudicial and discriminatory attitudes, and to celebrate these unique, rich and diverse histories and cultures. Probably the most famous gathering of Traveller communities, the Appleby Horse Fair, also takes place in June - this year (2023) it will be June 8th-14th - just fifty miles up the road from Lancaster in the Cumbrian town of Appleby-in-Westmoreland. The 'Chakra' wheel is the official emblem of the Roma. It is reminiscent of the Hindu Chakra and, as such, honours the Indian heritage of the Roma people. The sixteen-spoke wheel also symbolises the wheels of the horse-drawn trailers that have traditionally been 'home' to travelling peoples and, according to current Shera Rom (Head Gypsy) Billy Welch, represents "our nomadic heritage to roam freely between heaven and earth." Heaven is represented by the blue background above, and the fields and forests by the green background below. The blood-red of the wheel itself also brings to mind those lost during historical persecutions, not least the 250,000 - 500,000 European Roma murdered by the Nazis during World War II.

Chakra wheel symbol, red wheel on blue and green background
The 'Chakra' wheel is the official emblem of the Roma.