Victoria Smith Photography
Maistor House
High Street, Hull, UK
Enquiries/Bookings: victoriasmith268@outlook.com
Victoria Smith Photography
Maistor House
High Street, Hull, UK
Enquiries/Bookings: victoriasmith268@outlook.com
Fireground Residency
Red Light: The Story of Photography in the Fire Service
Over the course of 12 weeks, Victoria immersed herself in the Fireground Museum’s extensive archives, conducting interviews with former firefighters to explore the pivotal role of photography and illustration in the fire service. Her research delved into how images have served various functions—from training resources and product advertising to forensic investigations and documenting personnel or equipment—illustrating the long-standing need to capture events as they unfold.
Within Fireground’s rich collection, Victoria uncovered a treasure trove of original materials, including glass slides, film negatives, photographic prints, and moving images spanning over a century. Drawing inspiration from this wealth of history, she created a series of original artworks that highlight the diverse subjects and mediums involved in the intersection of photography and firefighting.
A key component of Victoria’s process involved constructing a darkroom within the museum, an homage to the historical darkrooms once found in fire stations. This space became the birthplace of her creative process, where she crafted abstract photograms using Fireground's collections. A selection of these striking works are featured in the exhibition.
Entitled Red Light: The Story of Photography in the Fire Service, Victoria's project explores the deep-rooted connections between photography and firefighting across several decades. The works on display offer fresh perspectives on some of the museum's more unusual objects, transforming them into captivating pieces of art.
The exhibition is accompanied by a documentary-style film that provides further insight into the historical use of photography by fire brigades, particularly in training, documentation, and forensic applications. In addition, Victoria attended an artist talk during Fireground’s 90th Anniversary Open Day on Saturday, 29th April 2023. This presentation showcased the evolution of photography in the fire service, illustrating its invaluable role in recording and preserving the history of firefighting as well as a showing of her film.