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Volunteer gallery gets last minute lifeline

BBC A woman with long, brown hair wearing a light grey hooded jacket and blue and white blouse standing outside a shop front which has white paper taped up inside the windows. BBC
Pauline Cooke from Trapezium Arts said on Sunday they had faced an uncertain future

A volunteer-run gallery which feared it would lose its base has been provided with a new venue at the last minute.

Trapezium Arts had been based in an empty retail unit in the Kirkgate Shopping Centre in Bradford.

However, it had to cut short its annual open art exhibition after being told the shop had been let.

Volunteers were in the middle of packing things up on Sunday when they were told they could use another empty retail unit just two doors away.

Five people standing and sitting inside an empty shop interior with a blue carpet and yellow walls.
The new unit used to house a travel agent

Founder member of the group, Pauline Cooke, 60, said they were given notice two weeks ago as somebody wanted to rent the unit.

"That's how Meanwhile Spaces work. When a commercial business wants it then unfortunately you have to move on."

Meanwhile Spaces aims to match landlords with empty properties to community groups who need space for free or at a reduced rent.

Ms Cooke said they had been a bit emotional having to move out and end their exhibition, which usually runs until Christmas early, but was relieved they had been offered a new unit.

"There's a lot of work ahead, but we are all fairly positive."

Trapezium A long room with white walls and strip lighting in the ceiling with colourful paintings on one wall and a group of people standing talking to one another opposite.Trapezium
Trapezium Arts old gallery was one of several empty units they had used since they were founded

This year's Open Exhibition featured 160 works by more than 60 artists, all from the Bradford district.

Caro Blount-Shah, 69, from Bradford was one of those showing her work.

"It's exciting to have a new start, actually, although there are lots of things that will need doing here," she said.

She said news of the new unit would mean an opportunity for artists in the city and surrounding area to continue to show their work.

"We're gradually building a base of lots of artists and I'm really pleased to be part of that."

Three men and two women group together wearing winter clothes in front of an empty shop
The group of artists was established six years ago

The group was set up by a collective of local artists six years ago and Stuart Wilde, 62, is another artist and founding member.

"There's talks of maybe groups like art workshops, which we didn't do a lot of in the old space.

"But we might here because it lends itself to having a gallery and some space at the back for workshops. So this will have its own flavour."

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