Some days (often) the comments on duckrabbit
Written by duckrabbitare better than the posts.
Nick Turpin’s recent comment on this post is a great example:
I’ve said this before with regard to The Photographers Gallery but the more I am involved with photography events in the UK the more I see the same people popping up again and again, the same people judging awards, the same people giving folio reviews at every event etc. There is a community of people in UK photography all on salaries from various Arts Council funded institutions that are actually not doing such a great job at finding and nurturing and promoting new British talent…..their decisions are safe and predictable, never rocking the boat and far too often they just take exhibitions that are curated elsewhere (usually the States). It is in this context that we see people like The Third Floor Gallery come along and what a breath of fresh air it is, they are not part of this salaried mafia, they have the youthful optimism that the Photographers Gallery had in its early days.
Spot on Nick. Spot on.
Author — duckrabbit
duckrabbit is a production company formed by radio producer/journalist Benjamin Chesterton and photographer David White. We specialize in digital storytelling.
Discussion (6 Comments)
So you guys are disillusioned with the Photographer’s Gallery but do like the Third Floor Gallery. This much I get from previous posts. But it doesn’t really help unless you’re in Cardiff a lot.
I’m from Dublin, but I’m going to be spending a lot more time in London over the next six months to a year. Where in the city can I go to see good photography in the centre, excepting Diemar Noble? C’mon, I want a solution, not a reiteration of the problem. There has to be somewhere that hangs good pics in London
Drop and gimme twenty places to go. Okay, gimme FIVE.
HOST gallery is great. They have lots of good events on. Lots. Probably the best gallery in the UK for that kind of stuff.
Hey Markham!
Might not help but you never know when you might be around. To be fair, when we opened up in Cardiff we relied mostly on the Ffotogallery for photography exhibitions, and if you didn’t like that, most probably there wouldn’t be anything else to see anywhere around here. In London things are pretty different: there’s lots of photography not only in dedicated galleries but in other venues as well. It’s worth checking the listings (I remember sometimes seeing us as the only venue in Wales compared to a dozen venues in London) to see what’s going on where. For example, you could go to the voyeurism & surveillance exhib in the Tate Modern, or you could go to Host, or the Photographers’ Gallery, or the Michael Hoppen Gallery (this one is more commercial, but if the stuff that’s up is good, it’s good!), depending on what they’re showing.
@duckrabbit: I’m very jealous of the Host programme of events! Not as a gallerist, but a member of the public, I really wish I could make it. I’ve only been around there once and asked advice on framing from Jon. Spent fifteen minutes chatting after which I had to run being about to miss my coach back.
@Markham: London is the best UK city for photography.
Good London photo galleries (not by any order):
1) HOST 2) Diemar/Noble 3) Victoria & Albert Museum (for material culture,yes) 4) Tate Modern (check what’s showing first) 5) Natural History Museum (for Wildlife Photog) 6) Magnum Photos Gallery 7) Getty Images Gallery 8) Taschen Bookstore Gallery (in Sloane Square, Chelsea. downstairs not many people know). 9) Proud Gallery 10) Saatchi Gallery (check what’s showing first)
Subscribe to Artrabbit alerts for latest shows in independent galleries.
Hope that helps.
Thanks folks, particularly @sojournposse – I’ll be sure to check those out when I’m in town. Didn’t know Getty and Saatchi had galleries, interesting.
@Joni – cheers, I’ll keep an eye on the listings. Host seem to get the thumbs up, alright. And I’ll make a point of checking you guys out if I’m anywhere near Cardiff.
Markham, we’ll get you a beer or cuppa if you happen to make the trip 😉