SituationLeeds is a city-wide festival of the arts celebrating twenty-years since its first iteration. As part of this, BasementArtsProject will be bringing a number of projects together and presenting them here in South Leeds. Alongside an exhibition of photography of South Leeds by Lane Shipsey (19.05 - 21.06), Garry Barker’s Listening City will see a series of ceramic ears dispersed around ‘The Corner’ he will come back to ask “how can the city listen to us?”. Lane Shipsey will also be involved in a photographic portrait project whilst Kate Jennings will be inviting the public to assist her in the creation of a community canvas, and the Ad Hoch Film Collective will be screening a new short experimental film ‘More Than Water’.
Kate Jennings | Community Canvas Project
11-24 May 2026
Community Participation Painting Event
16 May 2026 | 11am - 4pm
Garry Barker | The Listening City
16 May | 11am - 4pm & 9:30pm -10pm
Ad Hoch | More Than Water (Film Screening)
16th May | 9:30pm -10pm
Featuring the work of
Ad Hoch Film Collective
Garry Barker
Kate Jennings
Lane Shipsey
Originally staged in 2005, Situation Leeds created a city-wide platform for artists to test ideas, occupy spaces and connect outside traditional structures, and its return in 2026 builds on that legacy while responding to the realities of the present moment.
At its core, Situation Leeds 2026 is DIY, collaborative and open-ended. Rather than a top-down curated programme, it is formed through a growing network of artists, organisations and spaces who are shaping the festival together. This approach prioritises process over polish, supporting artists to develop and present new work in ways that are responsive, experimental and rooted in the city.
Work will take place across arts venues, artist-led spaces and everyday locations, reflecting a commitment to art beyond traditional thresholds. From exhibitions and performances to workshops, screenings and informal gatherings, the programme aims to engage audiences in direct and meaningful ways, creating opportunities for encounter in unexpected places.
“‘The reincarnation of Situation Leeds as an artist led endeavour will enrich not just the city, but the wider field of ‘art in the public realm’. As someone involved in the organisation, ambition, and ethos of the original festival, it has always seemed important to continue this work of democratising and reinvigorating the project of ‘public art’. Situation Leeds embraces spontaneity, playfulness, and interrogation and it is brilliant to see its reinvention’”
“‘We’re so excited to be working with Situation Leeds, encompassing a range of events led by visual artists working with both still and moving image, as well as sound artists. As a full time cinema, our daily work is all built around traditional narrative filmmaking and the weight or rhythms of that can make us insular or rigid at times. By opening our doors to makers working in other disciplines, including those at varying stages of the production process, we’re able to look at our space with fresh eyes and see new possibilities. Whilst our Heritage building is so important to what we do at Hyde Park Picture House, rooting parts of our programme in collabrations which invite play and new thinking are essential in keeping us rooted in the needs of our community today’”
About Situation Leeds:
The return of Situation Leeds comes at a time when artists continue to navigate challenging conditions, shaped by long-term funding pressures and wider economic constraints. Rather than framing this as a deficit, Situation Leeds 2026 foregrounds the resilience and ingenuity of artist-led activity in Leeds, drawing on a long-standing culture of self-organisation, experimentation and mutual support.
The original 2005 festival brought together over 100 artists across 60 events, activating more than 30 venues across the city. Its emphasis on participation, shared resources, and site-specific work helped redefine what a city-wide arts festival could be. Situation Leeds 2026 takes this as a starting point, using it as a reference rather than a blueprint.
By creating space for artists to self-organise, test ideas and connect with new audiences, Situation Leeds 2026 aims to re-energise the city’s visual arts ecology and contribute to an ongoing conversation about how art is made, shared and experienced in Leeds.
Useful links:
situationleeds.org | @situation_leeds | Get in touch | Join the mailing list
Situation Leeds is supported by Yorkshire Visual Arts Network and Hyde Park Book Club.