Marc West kets up close with an exhibition with rock portraits - and their subjects: Rock Portraits 90/94 @ Art Jericho

In the early 1990s, Oxford’s Jericho Tavern placed itself firmly on the musical map as the venue that played a major part in the rise to fame of bands such as Ride, Radiohead and Supergrass.

Tucked away down a tiny alley, just yards from that very pub, is a hidden gem of a gallery that’s currently paying homage to that golden heyday.

Rock Portraits 90/94 captures the blood, sweat and tears of that scene over a four-year period – all through the lens of photographer Dean Ryan.

He started with a tiny 110 camera – photographing gigs even when he was still at school and the excitement of film has never left him to this day. Dean painstakingly trawled through more than 6,000 negatives to choose never before seen images for this captivating show.

It’s the story of two love affairs, music and photography, and, Dean admits: “It was a great way to meet girls.”

As well as documenting the acts destined for global success, firm local favourites like ATL, Madamadam and Sevenchurch all feature – members of whom told me they couldn’t quite believe that was two decades ago!