The Promised Land: An Exhibition of Photography

A new exhibition will allow you to experience Leeds in the early 1990s, including Leeds Dock, the Royal Armories Museum and Hunslet Green.

The exhibition features over 100 previously unseen images of Leeds Development Corporation and modern photographs.

Since September 2023, a team of volunteers from Leeds Civic Trust have been cataloging sites captured in a collection of photo slides given to us by Leeds Development Corporation (1988-1995). Our volunteers identified the locations in over 500 slides and photographed the places as they are today.

Leeds Development Corporation was an agency set up under the Thatcher government to regenerate the city center and Kirkstall sites. The agency bypassed normal planning processes with decisions made by a small group of government-appointed executives. Planning approvals were then implemented by Leeds City Council.

In this exhibition you will see familiar sites such as Brewery Wharf and the Royal Armories as barren sites under construction. You will also see how historic buildings such as the Corn Exchange and the Third Hall of White Sails have changed over the last three decades.

The exhibition runs from Tuesday to Saturday (21-25 May 2024) from 10am to 4pm at 2 Brewery Place, LS10 1NE. The entry is free.

Trust director Martin Hamilton said:

“Leeds Development Corporation was a controversial organisation, but its impact on the city is still felt today. We are delighted to be able to present these photographs – which have never been exhibited to the public – and to reflect on how these sites look 30 years on.”

Rushbond PLC Chairman Jonathan Maud says:

“We are delighted to be the hosts of this fascinating exhibition. As the developers and owners of Brewery Place, one of the schemes originally conceived by the LDC, and as a company that engaged with the LDC all those years ago, we are keenly aware of the role this organization has played in making Leeds what what is today.”

Leeds Development Corporation chief executive Alan Goodrum says:

“It was a privilege to be part of the Leeds Development Corporation story from start to finish, 1988-1995, as Planning Director. Our motto was “Making things happen” and we were one of the urban development corporations inspired by Michael Heseltine.

“Around 9,000 jobs, 570 new homes and £357m of private investment have been created on our watch. A great deal of change has taken place, including the refurbishment of the Corn Exchange, the creation of the Royal Armouries, Hunslet Green and the regeneration of the old power station site at Kirkstall. We have ensured that there is a photographic record and it is wonderful that Leeds Civic Trust have assembled a team of volunteers to catalog them and organize this exhibition. I hope as many people as possible will visit this showcase of urban regeneration.”

Leeds Civic Trust is grateful for the support of Rushbond PLC, who are providing a site for the exhibition in Brewery Place – once the site of the Tetley Museum, but now a mixed-use scheme comprising offices, shops, bars and restaurants.

This post is based on a press release issued by Leeds Civic Trust

Photo: Leeds Dock before redevelopment

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