Side
Est. in 1977: Side is dedicated to lens-based documentary. We are home to the UNESCO-listed AmberSide collection, showcasing film and documentary photography on working-class life from the North East and beyond.
Sidegallery.co.uk
- 🐘 5 February marks 106 years since North East photographer Edgar G. Lee died. Lee was a unique photographer, using hand-built cameras and fast dry plates to catch real street moments as they happened. See more from his work in the AmberSide Collection: 🔗 sidegallery.co.uk/collectio...
- 📸 Join us! InSide is a monthly meet-up for photographers working in documentary. A space to share work, ask questions, and build community. Next meeting: 🗓️ Mon 16 Feb, 6–8pm 📍Meet in Sandyford Foyer, City Campus, Northumbria Uni, NE1 8QH 🔗 sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
- 🏭 For over a century, Suvilahti powered Helsinki. Since industry closed, artists, skaters, and communities have made the site their own. Now redevelopment looms. We spoke to Adam Monaghan about his project documenting its changing culture. 🔗 Read more: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/mysi...
- 🛍️ Last chance to take advantage of our vintage poster sale! With over 50 designs to choose from, each poster is a piece of documentary history. Until midnight January 31st, buy two or more posters and get 25% off your poster order. 🛒 Shop now → shop.amber-online.com/colle...
- 🎂 Murray Martin, born 27 January 1943 Murray Martin (1943–2007) was a founding member of the Amber Collective. His commitment to everyday life,and community continues to shape documentary practice in the North East and beyond. Learn more about Amber: sidegallery.co.uk/about/abo...
- 🏇 New MySide blog: Langholm Common Riding Matt MacPake photographs the Langholm Common Riding, documenting how a centuries-old tradition continues to shape memory, identity, and belonging. 🔗 sidegallery.co.uk/blog/lang...
- 🧳 New In Focus blog post - The Withdrawal of Soviet Troops from Czechoslovakia A close look at Dana Kyndrová's photographs from inside the Soviet barracks, where change is absorbed into routine, and doesn't look like the spectacle you expect. 🔗 sidegallery.co.uk/blog/in-f...
- 📸 MySide: Fabio Pellegrini A Rome-based firefighter and self-taught photographer, Fabio shares everyday scenes from Rome, Newcastle, and Naples, shaped by work, travel, and the places he passes through. Show us your side of life: Submit to MySide → sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
- 🎞️ Home Front was a 1986 Side Gallery exhibition by Derek Bishton & John Reardon, documenting everyday life in communities shaped by migration as the Empire came “home”. Original posters now on sale: £20 each, 25% off when you buy 2+. Sale ends 31 Jan. 🛒 shop.amber-online.com/colle...
- 🛠️ Most people today encounter Dunston Staiths as a quiet heritage site. In the 1970s, it was a dangerous place of work. A new film by Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen and Peter Roberts brings that history back into view → sidegallery.co.uk/blog/coal-staiths-of-the-river-tyne Commissioned by Tyne Derwent Way
- 📣 MySide open call: Moments of Change We’re inviting photos of everyday moments where something is shifting. Big or small. Planned or unexpected. Share your photographs with our team! Deadline: midnight (GMT), 1 April 2026 Submit → sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/myside
- 💃 MySide: Maria Maza – Christmas Ballroom, Blackpool Tower Ballroom, 2025 “I was mesmerised by the dancers, who, regardless of age, glided graciously and effortlessly.” Shared as part of MySide, our grassroots documentary photography project. Submit your images → sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/mys...
- 📣 Last year we said big changes were coming. Here’s the first! Side is establishing a curatorial office at Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, making the AmberSide Collection, our programming and documentary photography more accessible than ever. 📰 Read more: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/side-at...
- 🎡 The Hoppings in three acts: Richard Simpson drops us into the rush. Lorna MacKay catches the last lights at closing time. Michaela Simpson shows the morning after, rides packed and gone. Three views of one Newcastle tradition. Share your images: MySide’s open → sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/myside
- 🖤🌈 Black & white or colour? It’s a familiar debate for documentary photographers. We asked this and more in our new #MySide interview with photographer Michele Allan. 📰 Read the full interview: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/myside-michele-allan 📸 Share your photos: sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/myside
- 🦌 36 years ago Side opened "Reindeer People: The Saami of Lapland", exploring the Indigenous people of northern Scandinavia. The vintage poster is available on Side Shop (£20). Buy 2 or more posters to get 25% off your poster order until 31 January. 🛒 shop.amber-online.com/collections/merchandise
- ☎️ New year, same “one minute, I’m just figuring this out” phone call. This 1980 shot by Richard Grassick at Cummins Engines captures a feeling that hasn’t changed: a call in one hand, the other in your hair, solutions needed. 📸 ©Richard Grassick
- 🔨 MySide submission from Newcastle’s Ben Hodgson. He photographed the final days of the Toys 'R' Us demolition at the Metrocentre, explaining “This place may not have made me, but I’ve little doubt it made other generations…” Share your photos: sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/myside
- 📢 InSide meets again on Mon 12 Jan, 6–8pm at the Coffee Rooms (2nd floor), Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle. Six photographers will share work in the first hour, followed by open discussion and time to connect. Let us know you’re coming: forms.gle/1PXDuXZcApuQ...
- 🛍️ Our vintage poster sale runs until 31 Jan. Buy 2 or more and get 25% off your poster order. There are more than 50 original posters available from Side’s exhibition history, like this announcement poster from our 1999 to 2000 season. £20 each. 🛒 shop.amber-online.com/collections/merchandise
- Izabela Jędrzejczyk captures the Rowing Boat Dance in full swing ("Striking Women, 1984/85). In the 80s it was completely normal to sit on a beer-soaked floor and row in time with everyone around you 🎉 If you’ve got your party images, share with "MySide": sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/myside
- 🥴 We all know that 3.30 am party slump. Mik Critchlow caught it perfectly in "The First Footers, Ashington, 1986". Party hats slipping, eyes shutting, and the new year rolling in whether you’re ready or not. Submit your photos to "MySide: Ways We Celebrate": sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/myside
- 🪩 NYE calls for a disco ball! Tyrone Williams’ "Mirror Ball", 2018 is part of our 50x50 fundraising sale, with each print only £50. 🖼 Buy "Mirror Ball": shop.amber-online.com/products/mirror-ball-2018 🛍 Shop the 50x50 sale: shop.amber-online.com/collections/prints
- ✨ Karen Robinson’s "All Dressed Up", 2004-2005, follows teenage girls in East Durham as they get ready, go out and mark their own milestones. Because this time of year is full of its own parties & getting-ready rituals, we’re inviting you to share how you celebrate: sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/myside
- 📢 InSide meets again on Mon 12 Jan, 6–8pm at the Coffee Rooms (2nd floor), Tyneside Cinema, Newcastle. Six photographers will share work in the first hour, followed by open discussion and time to connect. Let us know you’re coming: forms.gle/1PXDuXZcApuQ...
- 👑 Did you know the AmberSide Collection holds work from around the world, including Diane Arbus? This 1970 photograph shows a senior citizens’ dance where two strangers were crowned King and Queen for the night. © The Estate of Diane Arbus
- 🌍 New on the blog: "MySide: Views from Around the World". A look at life from the likes of Ireland, Brazil, Cyprus, China, Iran and the North Sea. See more images and read the stories behind them here: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/myside-views-from-around-the-world
- 🎉 Christmas is here and we're celebrating with an image of recognisable festive domesticity from the AmberSide Collection. See more Christmas scenes from the North East, across the UK and overseas on our blog: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/christmas-in-the-amberside-collection 📸 ©Peter Fryer
- 🎄Another non-traditional Xmas image from the AmberSide Collection. Today it's "Christmas Eve, Hepworths the Tailors, Ashington" reminding us that for many the holiday is not always a break from work. See more on the blog: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/christmas-in-the-amberside-collection 📸©Mik Critchlow
- ❄️ Today we're sharing at a Christmas that doesn't look like you'd expect from the AmberSide Collection, with this scene from 1936 by Russell Lee. See more Xmas images on the blog: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/christmas-in-the-amberside-collection 📸 ©Russell Lee | US Library of Congress
- 🎄Christmas is almost here! This holiday season we're sharing Xmas images from the AmberSide Collection, with scenes from the North East, across the UK and overseas. See more on the blog: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/christmas-in-the-amberside-collection 📸 ©John Rigby
- ☃️ We're continuing our countdown to Christmas, as it draws closer, we're sharing Xmas images from the AmberSide Collection, with scenes from the North East, across the UK and overseas. See more on the blog: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/christmas-in-the-amberside-collection 📸 ©Paul Trevor
- 🎅 The countdown to Christmas is on. As it draws closer, we're sharing Xmas images from the AmberSide Collection, with scenes from the North East, across the UK and overseas. See more on the blog: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/christmas-in-the-amberside-collection 📸 ©Jimmy Forsyth | North East Museums
- As the year is coming to a close, we’re sharing a letter from our Managing Director, Laura Laffler, about where Side is heading and how the National Lottery Heritage Fund supported “Transforming Amber” has helped shape that future. Full letter: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/a-year-...
- 📢 Last chance to see "Amber: Documenting Place" at the Farrell Centre as it closes on 19 Dec! Showcasing prints and films from the AmberSide Collection on how people shape place in the North East. Open Wed–Fri, 1–4pm. 📸 Metrocentre, 1989 ©Peter Fryer 🔗 More info: sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
- 🌫 New on the Side blog - "In Focus: Every Breath They Take", a deep-dive into Keith Pattison's photo series on Hebburn Residents’ Action Group in the late 1980s, as they protested Monkton cokeworks. A close look at community action for clean air. Read: sidegallery.co.uk/blog/in-f...
- 🎄 Still looking for the perfect Xmas gift? There's still time to purchase from our Vintage Poster Sale! Order from Side on or before 15th December for your order to be processed before we close for the holiday. 🛍️ shop.amber-online.com/colle...
- 🎄 Nancy Honey: "Bramber Green, London 1993" Taken at a Xmas party at an elderly day centre in London while Honey researched older Londoners for the project "Old Enough to Know Better" (1994). Edition of 50 at £50 in our 50x50 fundraiser for AmberSide Trust. 🛍️ shop.amber-online.com/produ...
- ⚫️⚪️ On 9 December 1892, Newcastle East End agreed on a name change to become Newcastle United, choosing a name that spoke to the whole city. We're marking the date by resharing our blog on Seen.By.Zine’s special issue celebrating the Toon. 📰 sidegallery.co.uk/blog/nort...
- All of us at Side are saddened to hear of Martin Parr’s passing. He’s been one of the most recognisable voices in British photography for decades, and his loss will be felt across the field. 📸 The Non-Conformists: Halifax Rugby League Club Ground, Yorkshire, 1977 ©Martin Parr/Magnum Photos
- 🎄 Looking back at Blackpool Illuminations, 1972. Giant Santa, smiling lollies, kids around a blazing bonfire, clowns, and dragons on the prom. Where lights meet folk art. 👀 See more: sidegallery.co.uk/visual-cu...
- 🎥 Last chance to see "Miners’ Weekend School" hosted by Berwick Film & Media Arts Festival - Closing 13 Dec. The six part series follows political education and organising during the Miners’ Strike. Open Saturdays, 12 to 4pm, free to all. 🔗 sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
- 🎁 Our Vintage Poster Sale is live. Over 50 original posters from Side’s archive, and 25% off when you buy two or more. Holiday posting: orders before end of 15 Dec will be processed before we close for Christmas. Later orders ship from Side in the new year. Shop: shop.amber-online.com/colle...
- 💙 Today is Giving Tuesday Side and the AmberSide Trust care for an archive that holds working lives, stories and voices from the North East and beyond. It exists because people choose to support it. Thanks for standing with us. Donate: www.justgiving.com/charity/...
- 🎞 See Amber Films’ In Fading Light at Baltic Cinema on 10 December, 2 to 3.45pm. Made in North Shields with local crews, it captures a community in transition. The screening begins with an introduction from producer and researcher Andy Robson. Tickets: sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
- 📷 Are you a street photographer looking to meet others? North East Street Photography Festival are hosting a free Christmas Market photowalk in Newcastle on Sun 7 Dec, 3 to 5pm. Meet outside Socíété café. Free to all. 🎄
- 🦃 Wishing our US followers a happy Thanksgiving! Russell Lee photographed this scene in 1946. A family sat before supper, it is a reminder of the importance of connecting and eating together. Submit your image of a family ritual to "MySide: Ways We Celebrate" → sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
- 🔥 MySide: Michelle Webster, Feed the Flame, 2025 Community bonfires have long been part of the Wirral. New approval rules changed how events ran this year, and Webster photographed Woodchurch on the night theirs went ahead. Submit to MySide: Ways We Celebrate - sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
- 🚩 Hamaguchi’s "Narita Airport" poster from 1985. Protest, tension, and sharp graphic design in one vintage poster. Part of our Vintage Poster Sale. Buy 2 to get 25% off. 🖼️ Narita Airport poster, £20: shop.amber-online.com/produ... 🛒 Full vintage poster sale: shop.amber-online.com/colle...
- ⏰ REMINDER ⏰ 📷 Street Photography: In Conversation with Side Join us Mon 24 Nov, 5.30–7pm at Side for an open discussion on the role of street photography in documentary - from the AmberSide Collection and beyond. 🎟 RSVP → sidegallery.co.uk/whats-on/...
