Simon Sugden - The Beauty In Decay
In our first show of 2020, Trapezium Gallery was thrilled to present a photographic exhibition by Simon Sugden, from Keighley. His work focuses on old and abandoned architectural sites around Bradford. The photographs feature old mills and attractions way past their prime and devoid of human activity, but with an eerie sense of a forgotten time. Although these places stand forlorn, no longer maintained, the photographs capture another side to the process of dereliction, which is the beauty wrought by nature and the elements as they reclaim these sites. They appear galvanised, redeemed. This may be an illusion but is testament to the skill of the photographer who depicts scenes bathed in warm light and vivid colour.
Simon was born in Ilkley and has been interested in photography for most of his life. He picked up his first digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) camera 12 years ago from a friend and taught himself how to use it. He loves most aspects of photography, but his main passion is architecture and taking images of abandoned buildings.
Simon is especially inspired by dereliction in architecture and believes that buildings after their useful life have a second chance, where decay takes over and creates a different kind of beauty.
In pursuit of this he seeks out abandoned mills and old buildings and has been invited to photograph regeneration projects such as Sunbridge Wells and the Odeon building in Bradford city centre. Simon worked freelance for a building company and the local council, allowing him to get inside buildings normally closed to the general public.
Al tlhe photographs are untitled to preserve the anonymity of the locations and protect their natural state of decay.
External Links:
Yorkshire Post - Meet the Yorkshire photographer who has captured derelict buildings across the UK
Telegraph and Argus - Simon Sugden explores Bradford's old buildings at Trapezium
Dates:
22nd Febuary to 14th March 2020
Photographer:
Simon Sugden