On the 9th of July 2026 we visited the baths for a guided photo tour.
Eager to dive into the pool!
A bit of history first: Opened on 30 August 1940, designed by the Aberdeen City architects in Art Deco style. Bon Accord Baths, previously the Uptown Baths, is a category B listed Art Deco indoor swimming pool and baths complex in Aberdeen, Scotland. It is recognized as one of the most significant surviving indoor swimming pools of the interwar period in the UK. Closed permanently in 2008, put up for sale in 2015.
However, due to the public support attracted by the Save the Bon Accord Baths campaign, the complex was not sold. It is still owned by Aberdeen City Council, but Bon Accord Heritage have an agreement with the Council to develop plans for the restoration and reopening of the Baths under community ownership.
Just for a bit of fun, I’ve grouped images by subject matter so similar photos are all together. First up the overview shots of the main swimming pool. The light was streaming through the windows from the west (we were inside from 1900 to 2100 approximately) and almost everyone took this shot. The differences in editing is what makes it interesting to me.
The poolside seats were also a popular subject. Some of these had suffered from water damage and vandalism.
Skylights also featured in a lot of images. Note: nobody went around telling us what to photograph. For safety reasons we had to stay together as a group, which sometimes made it a bit harder to get a shot without people in it. More of that later.
There was also quite a lot of peeling paint, not to be missed by our eagle eyed photographers.
People photos – Some of us could not resist taking photos of other photographers taking photos. And the broken mirrors were a good opportunity for some arty selfies.
Abstract, ICM and detail shots
Windows. Most of these have the same repeating art deco pattern. Again we see different view points, different colour treatment, even down to getting rid of any colour by converting to black and white.
The baths, changing rooms, the gym, entrance etc. Basically all the other stuff that didn’t fit above somewhere.
Well earned drinks afterwards across the road.
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Visions Photography Club 
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