Gorbals Today

Street Level Photoworks are thrilled to present this exhibition of photographs created by Gorbals residents which were made during a series of photography workshops at Gorbals Library around the theme of Gorbals Now and Then, in collaboration with visual artist Bash Khan which ran from March to June 2023 from the library.

The newly formed Crown St Camera Club is made up of local people from a range of ages and backgrounds that responded to our call to work with Bash, Street Levels Community Artist in our Gorbals Culture Collective programme. The process involved participants developing camera skills to create contemporary images of the Gorbals in response to the archival works of Oscar Marzaroli (1933 –1988).

The group considered Marzaroli’s images and identified some of the recurring themes within the photographs such as children at play, buildings, street signs, and shops. The process involved mapping the area through photo walks with Bash and Peter Mortimer, a local historian, which included retracing Marzaroli’s own steps and visiting locations from some of his most famous photographs of the area. The group developed their own photography skills and created fascinating images that celebrate the Gorbals of today. Using a range of formats - Black and White Film, digital SLR’s, insta360, and their mobile phones, the exhibition represents just a handful of the many hundreds of photographs the group made over the course of the workshops.

The Gorbals Today exhibition features photographs by Donna Campbell, Susan Casey, Scott Chase, Cal Duffy, Andrew Gibson, Anna Goldthorp, Alison Johnstone, Eamonn Martin, Alexandra Oldham, Críostóir dePiondargás and Evelyn Tierney.

Visitor Information
The exhibition is viewed from the street (along Hospital Street, on the corner of Crown Street) and viewable during Library opening times:

Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday 10am - 5pm, and Tuesday & Thursday 10am - 8pm during the library opening times, when the shutters are open.

Produced by Iseult Timmermans as part of Street Level Photoworks Culture Collective programme, supporting creative photography opportunities across the Gorbals and Govanhill for a wide range of people.

Bash Khan is a Glasgow based photographer and filmmaker and Gorbals Community Artist on Street Level ’s Culture Collective programme.

This is a Street Level Photoworks partnership with Gorbals Library/Glasgow Life. With thanks to The Marzaroli Collection. Sign up to our mailing list for news on other events coming up in August at the Library.

Culture Collective is a network of 26 participatory arts projects across Scotland, shaped by local communities alongside artists and creative organisations and funded by Creative Scotland.