Born in 1945, Ian was raised in Clydebank, a Scots shipbuilding town on Glasgow's western border. In 1963, as the Beatles were breaking into the big time, his father moved the family to Newcastle upon Tyne where he'd been offered a better job. Ian took a design course at Newcastle College of Art and Industrial Design before embarking on a career as a graphic designer.
A few years later, he bought a second-hand camera and caught the photography buzz. Within months, he started earning a living with a camera by photographing babies and Junior Marching Bands (big in the north-east) before landing a job as in-house photographer to the Tyneside Theatre Company at the University Theatre in Newcastle.
This led to a chance meeting in early 1972 with Bob Brown (who managed the City Hall, then the noth-east's major rock venue) and an open invitation to photograph the many acts who appeared at the Hall.
Discovering how much fun and money there was in rock 'n roll, Ian hitched a lift to London on Roxy Music's tour bus in early 1973 and set about establishing himself. He joined forces with the writer Andrew Tyler at the NME for a couple of years before a short-lived stint with National Rockstar eventually led to an appointment with Sounds, just in time for the punk explosion (chronicled in his book "Flash Bang Wallop!" / Abstract Publishing 2000).
During the dismal 1980's, he did less work in rock, pursuing other interests before resurging with the launch of Vox magazine and the advent of Brit-pop. In 1999, he moved to the south coast of England with his wife Shoko and bought a PC to take advantage of the digital age. He now concentrates on marketing his archive through galleries and the internet.
In 1974 Rod Stewart once said to him, "A million quid for your accent!"
David Bowie performing as Ziggy Stardust at Newcastle City Hall in January 1973.
Bob Marley and the Wailers walking to their sound check before their performance in Birmingham on 19th July 1975
Newcastle City Hall, 1973, Ian Dickson eludes security to take this photograph of David Bowie performing as the legendary Ziggy Stardust
David Bowie performing at Newcastle City Hall, UK on the Ziggy Stardust Tour in June 1973
Rod Stewart from The Faces in his pyjamas in the Royal Garden Hotel, London in 1974
Kate Bush onstage performing her classic ballad 'The Man with the Child in His Eyes' at the Hammersmith Odeon in 1979.
Official contact sheet print from the acclaimed Duffy archive of David Bowie in his Scary Monsters Pierrot costume in 1980.
Contact sheet from photo shoot of Björk taken by Jill Furmanovsky in Primrose Hill in 1995
Anthony Kiedis comes alive when you aim a camera at him, John Frusciante was stoned and subdued, a perfect combo!
Referred to as rock music's 'Prince of Darkness', Nick Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity & a wide variety of influences.
British musician PJ Harvey was a distinctive voice in the early-'90s alternative rock explosion.
Oasis were an English rock music band formed in Manchester in 1991, to date the band have sold over 70 million records worldwide.
Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in 2002 in Sheffield. The band consists of Alex Turner, Matt Helders, and Nick O'Malley.
Our latest exhibition 'The Main Stage' is now on at the Royal Albert Hall. Don't miss our iconic photographs of rock's greatest performers
Here are the very latest prints we have added to our collection. We hope you love them as much as we do.
The Rolling Stones have been entertaining audiences for more than 50 years. Our collections share the best images spanning their career
We are delighted to share our brand new collection of Bob Dylan prints by photographer Arthur Rosato taken in 1980 during the 'Gospel Years'
