A CHESTER photographer and mental health advocate has had his work featured in Liverpool-based Open Eye Gallery's LOOK! Photo Biennial 2022: Climate exhibition after turning professional following the pandemic.

In 2020, Simon Hyde, previously a self-employed travel professional, saw the COVID-19 pandemic inflict great harm upon his livelihood. Fighting personal grief alongside a longstanding battle with disability and mental health, Simon chose not to be defeated by the pandemic, instead opting to transfer his skills as an amateur photographer into a degree course at the University of Chester.

Over two years on, Simon and his fellow Chester photography cohorts are seeing their work rewarded with a featured place in the prestigious Open Eye Gallery’s latest photography exhibition. The Make, Mend and Sustain exhibition is a collaborative project between photography and fashion students that highlights pressing sustainability issues relating to overconsumption and fashion waste.

Chester and District Standard: Simon's work will feature in the exhibition as well as being displayed outside the gallery entrance (top right).Simon's work will feature in the exhibition as well as being displayed outside the gallery entrance (top right).

Simon hopes he can inspire others who have dealt with similar struggles to him in life to conquer their dreams, adding that it is surreal to see his work in such a prominent institution as the Open Eye Gallery.

He said: "I’m beyond proud to be able to say that my work has been featured as part of such an important project that I am so passionate about, along with all of the incredibly talented students who were involved.

"It’s been a really difficult journey, but I know that I can stand tall as an example of somebody that has achieved their goals despite everything that life, mental health and disability has thrown at them. I want others to know that if I can do it, they absolutely can as well."

The Make, Mend and Sustain exhibition runs until Sunday, September 4 as part of the LOOK! Photo Biennial 2022: Climate at the Open Eye Gallery at 19 Mann Island, Liverpool.