We are a group of emerging artists who have set up a not-for-profit photographic darkroom as a community interest company in New Cross Gate, London SE14, just round the corner from Goldsmiths College.
The Gate Darkroom is aimed at budding artists, photographers, students and all who wish to work with black & white darkroom photographic processes in a communal & supportive environment.
The facilities consist of a cutting & viewing studio and a darkroom, all on ground floor level.  The darkroom has four bench mounted enlargers for black & white printing, from 35mm to 5×4 inches.  There are three Durst enlargers and a De Vere 504 with a Multigrade 500 head.  Paper developing is done in trays with chemicals provided, taking up to 20 x 24 inch paper.  All equipment and chemicals needed for film development are also available.   The studio has a preparation work bench with light box, cutter, resin-coated paper dryer, racks for air drying, a film drying cabinet and dry mount press.  There are two large darkroom sinks for print washing.
We want to make the darkroom as accessible as possible and keep the operational costs as low as we can.   If you become a member of The Gate Darkroom you will automatically have unlimited access to all its facilities, day and night, every day of the year.  Membership costs £60 per month and we look for an initial three month commitment.
It is also possible to use the darkroom on a less regular basis, so long as a member is present to help set up and lock up afterwards.  The cost for casual use is £25 per day for an 8 hour session.
These charges are set to cover the rental and other ongoing costs of the group.  Not only is this excellent value, it also represents a real opportunity to be involved in the development of a unique and exciting project.
The Gate Darkroom is based at Bond House, Goodwood Road SE14 6BL (http://goo.gl/maps/Ghrc4).  Bond House is an artist studio complex operated by ASC Artists’ Studio Company (http://www.ascstudios.co.uk/), a charity that supports visual and performing artists.
Bond House is also the home of Zeitgeist Arts Projects which supports new and ambitious artists with practical ways to sustain their practice (http://www.zeitgeistartsprojects.com/index.html).
Bond House is extremely accessible from most parts of London.  It is barely a minute’s walk to New Cross Gate station.  Trains from London Bridge to New Cross Gate take 5 minutes, leaving every few minutes.  Regular services on London Overground link New Cross Gate with Canada Water (Jubilee Line) in 5 mins.  There are also numerous direct buses including 36, 436, 453, 171 & 172 via Elephant & Castle and central London.
If you are interested in finding out more, please call either Lee Murphy on 07714 699 608 or David Whiting on 07854 948 527 or on email atthegatedarkroom@gmail.com.
Location Map:  http://goo.gl/maps/Ghrc4
Visit us on Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/TheGateDarkroom