Council spending cuts are forcing studios and venues to close, driving out the city’s creative businesses
Sun 19 May 2024 03.00 EDT
Last year, the city of Leeds held a year-long celebration of culture, complete with festivals, newly commissioned works of art and community projects. More than 1,000 events took place, with hundreds of volunteers and local schools taking part.
This year, however, artists and creatives in the West Yorkshire city are being forced out of their workshops and galleries, and say the dwindling number of spaces is crushing Leeds’s creative scene.
Aire Street Workshops, in the city centre, is home to about 150 artists working at more than 50 small enterprises. It has been owned by Leeds city council since 1981, but the council is planning to close the building to save money – and tenants have until 31 January to vacate the premises.
Photographer and designer Camille Hewitt, who helps run Aire Street Workshops’ social media pages, called the decision “shortsighted”. She said: “I was doing quite a lot of work on the Leeds 2023 Year of Culture…
