Leeds Art Gallery
I decided to take a visit to the Leeds Art Gallery to explore and experience the current work that the city has chosen display, something that I thought was great about this gallery upon entering was the lack of entry fee this meant that the gallery was accessible to everyone coming from a student perspective I found this extremely welcoming. The gallery also accommodated for dining and social amenities the gallery also offers a library another great element for students and such a creative environment to study in.
Going forward in discussion of the actual work on display within the gallery Something that really caught my eye within this exhibit was “Leeds Animation workshop Film canister of Give us a Smile” which was a really quirky, old-style animation from (1983) that combined illustration and photography. The animation itself depicts the social pressures of being a woman and the kind of challenges that women face even then in 1983 This Work is super relevant as it reminds me of the pressures women face from social media in today’s day and age, I definitely felt that this alone made the gallery completely worth the visit. Another piece of work that really stood out to me personally was “Hackney Flashers Who’s Holding the Baby?” (1978) displayed were prints made from slides of the original panels. These reproductions of the collaged panels Convey the message to the lack of childcare and the impact that this had on women's lives at this time. My interpretation of the work, it really challenges the idea of a woman's role as mothers and workers. Personally, I think the work is very Relatable to modern times with the cost-of-living crisis we are currently experiencing as a nation it really brings home this concept of that women Should be able to afford childcare so that they can work but unfortunately this is still not the world we live in. The work also really encourages activism in women seeing this also continued to make my visit to the Leeds art gallery even more positive it showed the work they were displaying connected to real and recent social issues meaning it was work that anyone could enjoy.
There was an interactive section where there were lots of activities not just for children but for adults as well that were pretty versatile, and anyone could participate in personally i I decided to take part in a collaboration project called “finding a space” that the gallery was holding. The area was for reflecting on the exhibition and your memories of the city of Leeds they asked you to draw or write on a post it notes and stick it on or around the map of the city of Leeds. Personally as someone who's come from this area I have a lot of memories in Leeds so I found this a really fun activity but I think on a broader scale even if you are just someone who is visiting the gallery and maybe just Spending time in Leeds it also encourages you to reflect on any memories you have created in your time of stay. This was a really great way personally to wrap up my visit definitely made it a memorable experience
