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We were delighted to work with architects Manalo & White on the redesign of our ground floor spaces which are now open. The newly improved spaces will enable us to warmly welcome our audiences to the gallery as well as provide an inviting space for live events, makers fairs, networking events and artist residencies. You can see what’s coming up on our events page.

Stephen Beasley, Associate Architect at Manalo & White, tells us more: 

Manalo & White’s aim was to create a foyer that felt like a small courtyard which stitches all the other spaces together but is also a convivial shared space where you can pause for a moment. 

We carried out a fine tuning of the existing arrangement, to change the relationships between the spaces and create a more generous foyer which allows a better understanding of the building as a whole. Being able to easily orientate oneself within a gallery or museum is important; studies have shown this increases the length of a visitor’s stay, which in turn permits a deeper engagement with art.

We worked closely with Towner’s Director Joe Hill on all aspects of the design. He had clear ideas about how the arts offer would differ on each floor of the building. The ground floor gallery spaces are to be very accessible and easily adaptable, for community-led activities, education workshops, artist residencies and performances as well as exhibitions. These had originally been separated by sliding-folding partitions, but this - and the recent introduction of a cinema - had resulted in a set of loose spaces which were undefined and therefore not easy to programme as distinct ‘rooms’. Limited runs of wall space interrupted by openings, nibs and doors also meant they were not ideal for exhibiting paintings and other two-dimensional works. 

To enlarge the foyer, as well as form a dedicated shop and a storeroom, we were forced to shrink the two gallery spaces. But this presented an opportunity to clearly define them as exhibition halls and resolve circulation issues. Their scale and proportion is now more suited to the way the spaces will be programmed, and we achieved longer runs of uninterrupted exhibition walls without any loss of display area.

There were other issues to solve such as the disconnection of the small foyer from the rest of the building and the location of the receptionist who was hidden from view on entry by the shop. It was important that any layout changes we made felt as if they had always been a part of the larger building. Finishes choices also had to complement or rehabilitate the material qualities dictated by the existing building. Joinery and light fittings were designed to bring a counterbalancing warmth and playfulness to the more utilitarian feel of the original concrete structure and anthracite steelwork.

With services designers Ritchie + Daffin, we considered the relationship of the lighting to the internal surfaces of the re-planned gallery spaces. Existing Erco lighting was repurposed as suspended tracks hanging lower than the existing concrete beams to avoid overshadowing and increase flexibility. The lighting provides another level of adaptability; it can be changed from cool, brightly lit gallery settings to warm, dimmer settings for social events or performances.

Reducing electricity consumption was another driver for the design. The original track light fittings were replaced with energy efficient LED ones, and the traditional gallery fluorescent strip lights were replaced with diffused linear LED fittings.

The cafe, which was previously hidden behind two sets of double doors, is now directly connected to the entrance foyer which makes it a more appealing space to spend time in. A discrete retail area has been formed to one side, away from the busier thoroughfare of the foyer. A new window brings in natural light deeper into the plan and reveals the interior to the street outside on what was originally a long run of blank wall. 

New joinery units around the foyer for lockers, benching, bookcases and cabinetry were designed as pieces of furniture pushed up against the walls leaving the central floor area as clear as possible. Some were taken full height to suit the scale of the space and to accommodate acoustic attenuation measures at high level.

Poor acoustics are problematic in spaces where conversation and interaction with staff is important. Acoustic panels have been integrated within the joinery and laid over the concrete soffits so they unobtrusively reduce the extent of exposed concrete. A felt wool curtain in the larger gallery space dramatically softens the hard acoustics typical of ‘white cube’ spaces for event speakers or performances. It can be drawn across the glazed wall to screen the space from the foyer when used for private meetings or when an exhibition requires a dimmed-out space. 

The gallery spaces will be equipped with concealed sinks for education workshops. New windows to the rear of the building provide natural light to the smaller gallery, making it more suitable for children’s activities.

As with the arrangement of the spaces, the intention was to go with the grain of the building in terms of structure and services. New services had to be carefully threaded through already congested ceiling voids. Existing bulkheads were rationalised and removed or extended to assist with the definition of the varied spaces whilst concealing services from view. Original fire compartmentation lines were carefully pushed back and folded under concealed ductwork to maintain the existing fire strategy for the building without letting it override the objective of providing a calm, welcoming and connected entrance space.