Red Barn Gallery facts for kids

The Red Barn Gallery, also known as RBG Belfast, is a special place in central Belfast, Northern Ireland. It's a photography gallery and exhibition space. What makes it unique is that it was the first gallery in Belfast to focus only on film and analogue photography. This means they show pictures taken with traditional film cameras, not just digital ones. The gallery first opened its doors in 2008.

What is the Red Barn Gallery?

The Red Barn Gallery is a place where you can see amazing photographs. It's set up as a not-for-profit group, which means it doesn't aim to make money. Instead, its main goal is to help people learn about and enjoy photography. They do this by holding exhibitions, working on special projects, and offering workshops. Their main aim is to inspire and teach people, especially about social documentary photography. This type of photography tells stories about people's lives and important events.

Focus on Traditional Photography

The gallery really believes in the old ways of taking pictures. They focus on using traditional film cameras. They also have a strong rule about not changing photos too much with computer programs. Their idea is that a great photo is mostly captured right inside the camera, without a lot of editing later.

How the Gallery Started

The Red Barn Gallery has an interesting past. It used to be a pub! A photographer named Frankie Quinn changed the old pub into the gallery. He even used a lot of white paint to make it look new and fresh. The building itself is on the spot where an actual barn once stood, which is how the gallery got its name. After the pub closed in the early 1980s, the building was used for storage or sometimes just sat empty before becoming the gallery we know today.

Cool Exhibitions at RBG Belfast

The Red Barn Gallery has hosted many interesting photography shows. Here are a few examples:

• 802% above the Norm: This exhibition in May 2009 showed photographs from Poland during a time when it was a socialist country. The pictures were taken by two photographers, Henryk Makarewicz and Wiktor Pental.

• Bombay St: Taken from the Ashes: This was a very popular exhibition that attracted over 7,000 visitors! It showed pictures taken by Gerry Collins. These photos captured the aftermath of a difficult event in Belfast on August 14–15, 1969, when parts of Bombay Street were damaged. The photos had been kept private for nearly 40 years before being shown.

• Frankie Quinn: XXV: In early 2010, the gallery showed a special collection of photos by its director, Frankie Quinn. This exhibition looked back at many years of his work.

• Stefania Gurdowa: Negatives must be stored: This exhibition in May 2010 featured old photographic plates that belonged to Stefania Gurdowa. It was a unique look at how photos were made in the past.