It won’t just be drunken tourists and obnoxious stag parties rolling around Temple Bar this Christmas thanks to the Dublin University Photography Association (DUPA). They have chosen Filmbase on Temple Bar’s Curved Street as the location of their Christmas exhibition, which they hope will attract both students and non-students alike. Entrance to the exhibition is free of charge and the doors are due to open on Monday 1st December at 7pm. Muiris Wolf, chair of DUPA, assures visitors that, quite appropriately for the location, the event will not just be about the photos but will also be a social gathering with wine and “hors d’œuvres” on offer.
The theme for the exhibition is “emotion”, but this should not put people off, comments Wolf. “We’ll accept any genre and we’re open to abstract interpretations of the theme.” DUPA are still accepting entries to the exhibition up until 28th November. The winner of the competition will receive a €100 gift voucher for Camera Exchange on South Great George’s Street. A section of the exhibition will be reserved for photos that don’t quite fit the theme.
This exhibition will mark another success for DUPA this year, whose members recently enjoyed a lecture given by award-winning photojournalist Julien Behal. Behal narrated some of the stories behind his famous shots, one of which was recently featured on the cover of August’s ‘Time’ magazine, as well as disclosing some of his personal tips for getting that perfect shot.
Mr Wolf was keen to identify the active side of DUPA. “DUPA is not just about sitting around learning photography skills.” The society took its first field trip of the year to the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin to try and put into practice some of the theory they have been learning over a series of classes. As well as regular walks around Trinity that give members a chance to consider sights they encounter on an everyday basis from a different perspective, the society plans a trip abroad for later in the year. DUPA visited Edinburgh last year and has enjoyed trips to Berlin, Amsterdam, St Petersburg and Paris in years before.
DUPA members have 1 year long access to Trinity’s two darkrooms and can use the supplied chemicals free of charge. This compliments the numerous darkroom classes put on by the society in which members can learn how to turn their unprocessed film into negatives, and turn these negatives into prints.
For more information on getting involved with DUPA, or submitting photos for the exhibition this Christmas email [email protected].
