Thursdays from 10.00 - 13.00
How does a public gallery, dedicated to photography and related media, ensure it meets the interests and needs of 21st century audiences?
While photography was once marginalised within the arts sector, and treated as an inconsequential lowbrow pursuit, it is now taken seriously by both major cultural institutions and the art market. As a thriving practice enjoyed across societies and cultures, photography has proved its ubiquitous and important role in people’s lives.
Expect honest presentations and conversations about exhibiting photography, learning programmes, audience development, marketing and, importantly, securing the funds to make it all happen.
Format
Taking place weekly at The Photographers' Gallery, sessions include a blend of lectures, visits to the exhibitions, group discussions and presentations. Each week will feature guest contributions from The Photographers' Gallery staff.
Who is this for?
Open to all who are interested in photography and for those who want to gain a first-hand understanding of how museums and galleries influence the production, circulation and interpretation of photography today.
Produced in partnership with MA Museums, Galleries & Contemporary Culture at the University of Westminster
Weekly schedule
Week 1 | Looking Back on Thu 28 Jan
People think there’s always been The Photographers' Gallery. Long may it remain, for ever and ever!
Sue Davies - founding Director of The Photographers' Gallery
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Founded in 1970 and open to the public in 1971, The Photographers’ Gallery was the UK’s first public gallery devoted to photography. The inaugural exhibition was The Concerned Photographer – a powerful and provocative presentation of social documentary work curated by the great Hungarian/American photographer, Cornell Capa (brother of Robert), and featuring photographers such as Werner Bischof, Robert Capa and André Kertész.
The course begins with an introduction to The Photographers' Gallery's history. We’ll look at how and why the gallery was established and some of its early activities. The session will also address the importance of preserving our institutional history and providing public access to our archive collections.
This session includes presentations by Clare Grafik, Head of Exhibitions and Kathryn Tollervey, Archivist at The Photographers' Gallery.
Week 2 | Staffing and Support on Thu 4 Feb
There are over 50 full and part-time staff who help to ensure The Photographers’ Gallery’s values remain at the heart of what we do. We’ll look at The Photographers' Gallery's staffing structure (Organigram) and at how the gallery’s team fits and works together.
We will also unpack the range of public, trust and foundation support we receive, including our status as a National Portfolio Organisation (NPO) with Arts Council England.
This session includes a presentation by Sam Newman, Head of Development at The Photographers' Gallery.
Week 3 | Audience Development on Thu 11 Feb
The Photographers’ Gallery attracts more than a quarter million visits every year, with over 7,000 students from school and college groups and a broad spectrum of the public. Marketing for each of our exhibitions requires a bespoke series of decisions in relation to design and branding, social media campaigns and special events that can encourage visits from specific audience demographics.
In this session we’ll look at The Photographers’ Gallery’s strategies for attracting and retaining audiences. What different types of marketing do we employ? How do we pique curiosity and interest in our exhibitions, events and other activities? And what is the requirement of Arts Council England to report on our work with audiences?
This session includes a presentation by Sara Esteves, Marketing & Audience Development Manager at The Photographers' Gallery.
Week 4 | Learning Programmes on Thu 18 Feb
How does a gallery work with and for people to create a deeper engagement with an exhibition or a broader involvement in activities such as career development, gaining new skills or knowledge, or co-creation?
Public participation in our programmes is a way for staff at The Photographers’ Gallery not only to support people's involvement in what we do, but also to employ and support emerging artists, curators and other professionals to lead on aspects of the programme. Staff, in turn, learn from each event and programme - what works, what doesn’t and how to make things better in the future.
We will have a discussion about how galleries engage with people through learning and participation, including programmes directly organised with and for young people, as well as working with the wider public.
This session takes place off-site at University of Westminster and includes a presentation by Rawanne Koumaira, Curator, Youth Programmes and Janice McLaren, Head of Education & Projects at The Photographers' Gallery.
break
a mid-way break
Week 5 | Digital Programmes on Thu 4 Mar
In 2011, The Photographers’ Gallery established its Digital Programme in order to generate new knowledge and thinking about the role of the post-photographic image in contemporary art and society. This includes a particular focus on computational, social, ecological, aesthetic and political issues arising from the photographic image in networked culture.
We’ll introduce a range of exhibitions and commissions exploring photography's relationship to digital creation and interaction, as well as our online delivery of public programmes.
This session takes place off-site at University of Westminster and includes a presentation by Sam Mercer, Curator, Digital at The Photographers' Gallery.
Week 6 | Our Enterprises on Thu 11 Mar
The Photographers’ Gallery is home to three key commercial activities - our Bookshop, Print Sales Gallery and Cafe - with all profits helping to support its public programmes.
These areas of public-facing activity mean that staff members are continually gaining direct feedback from, and an understanding of, the people who consume, buy and collect what’s on offer. Staff are also valued by gallery visitors as experts in their field and sought out for advice and assistance.
We will look at the value of commercial activities and how they foster their own microcosms of visitors and consumers.
This session includes a presentation by Sean O'Sullivan, Head of Commercial & Operations at The Photographers' Gallery.
Week 7 | Curating on Thu 18 Mar
The Photographers’ Gallery is committed to exhibiting a broad range of British and international work with an emphasis on new developments in the medium of photography and current debates around photography and society. Our exhibitions are scheduled two to three years in advance.
We will look at the spectrum of exhibitions we programme and what informs this. We’ll also unpack our annual Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize. The Prize identifies and rewards artists for an exhibition or book shown or produced in Europe that has made a significant contribution to photography in the previous 12 months.
This session includes a presentation by Julia Bunnemann, Curator at The Photographers' Gallery.
Week 8 | Preparing for the Future on Thu 25 Mar
In our final session we reflect on the preceding weeks’ discussions and debates as we look to the future. What challenges and opportunities lie ahead as we continue our mission to explore how photography connects, captivates and radically changes the world we live in.
This session includes a presentation by Shoair Maviian, Director of The Photographers' Gallery.
About the Course Tutor
Dr Sara Dominici is Reader (Associate Professor) in Photographic History and Visual Culture at the University of Westminster. Her research explores the relationship between photography, other media and technologies, and the infrastructures and networks of modernity. Sara is currently completing her second monograph, Dark in Name Only: The Experience of the Early Photographic Darkroom, under contract with the University of Minnesota Press and supported by a British Academy/Leverhulme Small Grant Award. Her first book, Reading the Travel Image, was published with Routledge in 2018. Sara is co-Editor-in-Chief of Visual Culture in Britain (since 2023), and at Westminster she is Course Leader for the MA Museums, Galleries and Contemporary Culture (and with Professional Experience) and co-Director of the new Heritage Connections Group.
Bursaries
We offer a limited number of partial bursaries covering 50% of course. If you wish to be considered for a partial bursary you need to submit a short statement (max. 500 words) to projects@tpg.org.uk, outlining how this workshop or course would contribute to your professional development. We will let you know whether we can offer you a bursary place as soon as possible.
We actively encourage applications from groups who are currently under-represented in the cultural sector in the UK. This includes people who identify as D/deaf, disabled* and neurodivergent; those with caring responsibilities; candidates from Black, Asian and ethnically diverse backgrounds. Please refer to the Equality Act 2010 for more information.
By booking for this event you agree to our Terms & Conditions.