Diana Ursachianu

Manchester House of Photography | "in between the lights"

Phenomenologists argue that we can never fully acknowledge all the characteristics of a city. However, I strongly consider that photography is the finest media which encapsulates the essence of a city’s character. I decided to design a museum of photography as a way of responding to the atelier’s question “how is a building like a city?”.  Located in Northern Quarter, Manchester House of Photography accommodates a collection of over 80,000 pictures and prints of old Manchester.

As the concept of the museum is based on photography and light, the overall atmosphere of the museum is a simulation of being inside the camera. Hence, a dual exposure is created by having a contrast between overlit and underlit spaces. The prismatic volume is overlit while the two buildings are underlit.