Leeds Gallery and Duke Street Studios

We recently went on a group trip to Leeds Gallery and Duke Street Studios, both based in Leeds Munroe House. At the time, the Sun Awards were being exhibited in Leeds for the first time ever in Leeds Gallery. I had never heard of the Sun Awards before, but was very interested to see and hear more about what it entails. The Sun Awards are a Northern photography award which is trying to celebrate and promote Commercial photography. This therefore meaning that the only people who can actually enter the competition are those who are photographers on a professional level. There are not any specific guidelines as to what can be entered, meaning there was a variety of styles, genres and photographic techniques.
There were also a number of photographers, some of which had more than one photograph in the final 50. This was because, when the judges were choosing the final photographs they did not include names, meaning it was only the best photographs that were chosen, and also that there was a lack of bias.

The photographs themselves were printed on Acrylic paper and all hung up very neatly next to each other in a nice simple order. Although the photographs were not printed on a large scale, they were still big enough to appreciate any details within them. I think that the layout of the Sun awards was a big improvement on the last Gallery visit to White Clogh Gallery.

There was a lot of photographic work which I liked, and a few photographers who I have now made a note of for future reference. However I was not too sure about the photograph that came first. This photograph was one of a plastic modelling head inside a fridge, and although the composition and colouring of the photograph was brilliant, I did question whether there were other photographs which should have possibly deserved it more. However, this is simply a matter of opinion by myself.

After looking around Leeds Gallery and thoroughly enjoying it, we then proceeded to go to the 2nd floor of Munroe House, which held Duke Street Studios. Inside there is a variety of creative spaces available for monthly hire, including a product design work station, office spaces, communal working spaces, A meeting room, other studio spaces and soon to be a photographic station. 

I really liked the modern design of the studio, and thought it seemed like a nice place to work around people who are interested in the arts as well. The idea of having everything on the same floor so it is easily available is a good one, meaning people can go there are get all their work done in the same place, which is something which is not too widely available at the moment in Leeds. However, I did think that the prices were a little high, but for someone with a disposable income and a love for arts, Duke Street Studios are an ideal place to work.