Impressions gallery - 30th anniversary

IMPRESSIONS in York was only the second photographic gallery to open in Britain, and this evening marks the beginning of its 30th anniversary celebrations. Even for a photographic gallery, it would seem unfair to start with a negative, but it was ever thus for artistic ventures: they want more public money; a sceptical public wonders what the £107,500 funding goes on - and only 11 per cent of York residents frequent the city's galleries.

What are the misconceptions, the false impressions of Impressions? "That we're elite," says Anne McNeill, gallery director since 2000, who quickly adds: "I think that view has changed over the past two years but because we show contemporary work there's this feeling that we're only addressing a specialist audience - which is not true. Our visitor figures have more than doubled since 2000.

"We pride ourselves on being open and accountable with good explanations of the exhibitions, artist statements, talks and discussions and a good educational programme.

"Impressions Gallery is not about my arbitrary tastes; it's about saying this is what's happening in photography and digital arts, and I'm a firm believer in making the exhibition selection process as open as possible and being able to defend it."

Tonight, Impressions launches its 30th anniversary exhibition, Time, Memory And Myth, with a series of light projections on to the medieval walls of nearby Clifford's Tower. Curated and collated by Anne and former directors Val Williams and Paul Wombell, the exhibition will be a celebration of past artists, staff, friends and shows, the passage through three decades being charted on a nostalgic time line and in a memory room of press clippings and photographs.

It will be a time for reflection; a time of memories triggered by an array of images from Cecil Beaton portraiture to Sebastio Salgado photojournalism; a time to re-analyse the sentiments of the Museums and Galleries Newsletter Number 2 in 1973: "This gallery was based on hope, a certain amount of good luck and the conviction that photography must be recognised as an important part of art and everyday life."

Hope and good luck still have their place, but the word that leaps out at Anne McNeill is "conviction": conviction in the gallery's abiding role in exploring the progress not only of photography but also of digital media.

That determination is made clear both in the Artistic Vision statement that greets visitors to the downstairs gallery rooms and in Anne's contribution to the Time, Memory And Myth commemorative catalogue.

"The history of Impressions mirrors the changes in attitude to photography and charts its growing status as an art form," she says. "When Val Williams and Andrew Sproxton decided to start a gallery in York specialising in photography in 1972, it was broadly acknowledged that photography was undervalued in Britain. Photography was not taken seriously, there were few opportunities to exhibit; photography, the 'poor cousin', was sneered at by the cultural establishment and had to fight battles unheard of in other artforms."

What a contrast with today, Anne observes. "British photography is in a strong period right now.

"For 30 years we've constantly challenged the perception of what a photographic image can be; we've informed the understanding of photography and have prompted the enjoyment of photography."

With the gallery boosted by a £159,000 recovery programme between October 2000 and October 2002, funded by the National Lottery, Impressions is on the upward curve once more. Will the gallery still be here in 30 years' time? "Some evolution of it, yes. It's not like a dinosaur; it won't be extinct," says Anne. "Thirty years ago, none of us could have envisaged the internet and worldwide web, and we can only imagine what will happen in photography and the means of production and communication."

FACT FILE...

Name: Impressions Gallery, York

Occupation: Specialist contemporary photographic gallery. Only the second to open in Britain, Photographers Gallery in London being the first. Artistic vision now spans photography and digital arts

History: 542 artists; 353 exhibitions; 30 years; five directors, Val Williams, 1972-1980; Frances Middlestrob, 1982-1986; Paul Wombell, 1986-1994; Cheryl Reynolds, 1995-1999, Anne McNeill, 2000 onwards; three gallery sites

Birthplace: 39a, Shambles, November 1972, although first exhibition, by Magnum photographer Werner Bischof, was held in temporary space at 7a, Clifford Street

First Shambles exhibition: Whitby scenes, 19th century by Frank Meadow Sutcliffe; 20th century by Martin Parr and Daniel Meadows, staff photographers at Butlin's, Filey

First retrospective: Sir Cecil Beaton, doyen of British photography, 1973

Last Shambles retrospective: Bill Brandt, of Picture Post, 1976

Gallery moves: June 1976, Impressions outgrows Shambles premises; gallery relocates to 17 Colliergate

First Colliergate show: The Darker Side Of The Moon, by Angus McBean, surrealist photographer of 1930s-40s

Landmark Colliergate shows: June 1978, first Yorkshire Arts Association Photography Award Winners exhibition; July 1984, What A Woman Can Do With A Camera, first UK exhibition for pioneering American photographer Frances Benjamin Johnston; December 1987, Mind, featuring portraits of insanity from 1850s; 1988, gallery links up with the Independent newspaper to present a "news wall"; December 1988, retrospective of South African maga-zine Drum; 1990, Ecstatic Antibodies - Resisting The Aids Mythology

Gallery moves again: June 1992, to Grade II-listed building, a former Georgian house at 29 Castlegate

Landmark Castlegate shows: March 1993, Mask, Valerie Brown's photofit mask, asking "What does it mean to be European?"; January 1995, retrospective of late Jo Spence's pioneering use of photography for personal history and re-enactment therapy; January 1998, Photo 98, UK Year of Photography and the Electronic Image launched at Impressions with European premiere of Kurdistan - In The Shadow Of History

Gallery closes: June 2000 for new roof and internal refurbishment

Gallery re-opens: October 2000, launch of SightSonic, York's first international digital arts festival

More Castlegate landmark shows: March 2001, Lansley & Bendon's humorous films and ambiguous large-scale images in marriage of photography, film and video; October 5 to November 30, 2002, Time, Memory And Myth, 30 years of Impressions.

Updated: 08:57 Friday, October 04, 2002