ABOUT Solange’s Date Night
Join interdisciplinary visual artist Solange Adum Abdala for a hands-on exploration of photography, light, and layered storytelling. This Date Night draws on her work in our Image / Object Photosculpture exhibition, which will be on display in our gallery alongside the workshop as part of this year’s Capture Photography Festival.
A palimpsest is an ancient manuscript that has already been used, with the original text erased or scraped away for another. This was often done because writing materials were scarce or expensive. In this Date Night, we will creatively explore printed materials, books, magazines, encyclopedias, and more as palimpsests that accumulate layers of information.
Working with light, thin pages and cutouts, we will activate printed materials, discovering what publications conceal and seeing the revealed in new ways, like a three-dimensional collage. Using flashlights, lamps, and a lightbox, we will create photographs and interventions that engage with photography, archives, writing, and memory. The workshop will provide a playful and reflective space to rethink how we see and what lies beneath the surface.
By the end of the workshop, participants will take home a set of digital photographs, along with their own intervened book containing cutouts, overlays, and illuminated discoveries that capture the layered effects explored.
Cost:
- $40 or buy 2 for $70
What to expect:
- Explore hidden layers in printed materials.
- Transform books into illuminated, interactive works that combine photography, archives, and writing
Skills Learned:
- Combine photography, archives, and writing.
Who should attend
- Anyone interested in photography, writing, archives, or hands-on creative exploration
- People curious about experimenting with light, texture, and layered storytelling
What you need to bring
- Old books, magazines, or notebooks (optional, we will supply)
- Camera or phone camera
Registration Closes at midnight on the Tuesday before the class begins (2 days before the class begins)
about date nights
Since launching in 2022, our monthly CityScape Date Night Series has become a familiar part of the arts and cultural scene in Lower Lonsdale. Held inside an active gallery, these evenings are about discovering something new, new connections, new creative habits, and fresh ways of seeing the world around you. Each month we invite a different local artist, emerging and professional, to share their own artistic stories, techniques, and inspirations, and together we explore a wide range of mediums.
Our past date nights have included textiles, sculptures, watercolour, digital art, creative writing, drag life drawing, kintsugi, recipe zines and more, with many workshops using eco-friendly, low-cost, and accessible materials so it’s easy to continue the practice at home if you fall in love with it.
In 2026, we’re expanding the series to include even more digital and experimental art forms. We’re partnering with Capture Festival to offer two photography workshops, one digital, one analogue, set alongside our own Image / Object Photosculpture exhibition. These immersive sessions explore layering, manipulation, and visual storytelling through both modern and traditional photographic approaches.
Whether you’re looking to explore a new creative practice, start a hobby, meet others, or simply enjoy an evening out, each Date Night brings a fresh artistic experience with a different artist every month.
