photographic exhibition Archives - Blackpool Social Club

10 Mar

Exhibition review: Tea Amantes 2025 photowalks – A year on the Streets

David Simper0 CommentsGuide, Visual Arts & Exhibitionsart photography, blackpool arts scene, photographic exhibition

Having participated in another twelve months of the Tea Amantes photo walks and declaring his interest with three photographs in this exhibition, David Simper caught his usual service 61 bus to view his friends' work and generally catch the vibe. Big thanks go to Kenny McRae and team for coordinating the second Tea Amantes photo walks exhibition, showcasing 2025's work. It's no mean feat to gather work, select the pieces to be included, arrange the printing, sort the framing, do the hanging and put together the PR. Not to mention designing and printing the accompanying catalogue (on sale in the…

11 Jan

Photography Exhibition: Steve Webberley at Tea Amantes

David Simper0 CommentsGuide, Visual Arts & Exhibitionsarchitectural photography, blackpool arts scene, photographic exhibition, tea amantes

Despite the cold weather, David Simper caught the Service 61 bus to take in the opening of Steve Webberley's exhibition at the excellent Tea Amantes tea room and gallery. This was a treat for the architectural photography fan and lover of saturated colour. This small collection of high quality prints is a sample of Steve's work over several years, reflecting the exotic places he has been, including Santorini in Greece, Bay of Naples in Italy and Malta. Home locations include England's South coast and the North West region. Steve has used his phone and a Digital Single Lens Reflex camera…

08 Nov

Exhibition Review: Back to Front – Lee Cobb at Tea Amantes

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblackpool art scene, photographic exhibition, photography, tea amantes

The month has turned again and it's time for the new exhibition at Tea Amantes. Following on from Kenny McCrae, the new show features another photo walk stalwart, Lee Cobb. David Simper caught the service 61 bus to the town centre to catch Lee's vision. The clocks have gone back since last month's show launch and so it felt a little strange for Corporation Street to be that much darker as I disembarked from the bus and walked the short distance down Albert Road to the Tea Amantes cafe and gallery. A good crowd was in the house, including many…

15 Oct

Exhibition Review: It’s Not So Grim – Kenny McCrae at Tea Amantes

David Simper1 CommentVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblackpool arts scene, photographic exhibition, photography, street photography, tea amantes

A regular at the Tea Amantes photo walks, David Simper was keen to see his colleague's work. He caught the service 61 bus down to the town centre to view this exhibition. One of the Street Souls street photography group and a ring leader of the Tea Amantes photo walks, Kenny is overdue his own exhibition at the cafe and gallery. His work does not disappoint. The pictures revolve around a street photography ethos, mixed with opportunities for more formal portraits. Colour interchanges with monochrome for a pleasantly varied effect. I'm pretty sure I can remember watching Kenny take some…

14 Aug

Photo Exhibition Review: HIVEArts PhotoPool 25 – Paul Berriff OBE and Albert Cooper

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblackpool arts scene, film photography, photographic exhibition, rock photography, sports photography

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=""] Following the build up to PhotoPool 2025 coordinated by the HIVEArts team, David Simper caught the service 61 bus to see what was on offer on opening night. On entering the gallery, I find the entry walls covered in large framed prints of very young looking rock and pop stars of early 1960s vintage, from the Rolleiflex of Paul Berriff OBE. Further into the gallery and on the gallery's window sills, are prints from Albert Cooper's library of sport photographs, including figures such as Jack Charlton, Alex Ferguson and Mohammed Ali. The gallery is full of exuberant people…

24 Jul

Exhibition review: ‘Kaleidoscope’ – Emilia Zogo

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblack and white photography, photographic exhibition, photography, tea amantes gallery

Having reviewed Emilia's previous Tea Amantes exhibition, David Simper was keen to follow up and see her latest work. The show did not disappoint. These dream-like multiple-exposure photographs focus on the British seaside and form part of her masters degree exhibition. Since her last show, Emilia Zogo, has clearly taken a radical step forward in terms of her artistic expression. These multiple exposure images are very different from her previous photography, the choice of digital monochrome aside. The pictures have a dreamlike quality, presenting a new perspective on the British seaside, our bit of it in particular. They…

16 Jun

Exhibition Review: Fragments of Time by John Threlfall

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblackpool arts scene, Fylde Coast, photographic exhibition, photographs

The evening of 2nd June 2025 saw David Simper catch the service 61 bus to the Tea Amantes cafe and gallery to catch this exhibition of fine art photographs taken by local photographer, John Threlfall. I was familiar with John's work, as it frequently pops up on my Instagram feed, its quality standing out. Whereas I have always favoured monochrome, he goes for saturated colour, with the occasional monochrome for a change. In the light of this, I was particularly keen to catch this exhibition. On entry I found a buzzing cafe and John about to make his speech, thanking…

08 Dec

Photography Exhibition Review: This and That – Elizabeth Gomm

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblackpool arts scene, photographic exhibition, photography

Elizabeth Gomm's photograph have featured on Blackpool Social Club many time over the years, as the photo journalist diligently captures many of the town's major happenings. David Simper was keen to see some of them exhibited. He caught the handy service 61 bus down to the Tea Amantes cafe and gallery to view the images on offer. Elizabeth's work majors on the type of wildlife photography that I always wanted to do as a young photographer and never quite managed to do. Many of the creatures photographed here are readily available in our parks and seashore, but that doesn't undermine the…

05 Aug

Exhibition: HIVEArts PhotoPool

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblackpool arts scene, photographic exhibition, photography

HIVEArts' month long photographic extravaganza commenced on 3rd August 2024, with a two floor exhibition of work and talks from two photographers. David Simper bused down to the Church Street venue to view the work, listen to the talks and enjoy the vibe. The PhotoPool collective is HIVEArts' photographic arm and supports a variety of photographers to showcase their work across the county. A month long programme of events has kicked off and will feature a variety of work, talks, workshops, studio sessions, photowalks, cameras for sale and photo developing. There's also the Tramstop Takeover showcasing local photographer's work. On…

26 Apr

Exhibition Review: No.12 Collective

David Simper1 CommentVisual Arts & ExhibitionsExhibition, photographic exhibition, photography, uclan

With varied photographic show on offer at The HIVEArts Church Street gallery, David Simper was close to duty bound to catch the service 61 bus and view what turned out to be an excellent show exhibited by a talented group of students. The HIVE shop roller shutter was down when I arrived, a little early, for this exhibition, which gave time for a little sit down and some reflection. Soon we were able to climb the broad stairs to witness a ribbon cutting by local photographer, Richard Davis, who stayed to socialise and view the work. After this the gallery…