Newport Street Gallery

Newport Street Gallery in London is a free public art museum displaying Damien Hirst's 3,000-piece personal collection inside converted 1913 theatre scenery painting studios. Designed by architects Caruso St John, the Β£25 million development spans 37,000 square feet across three listed buildings and two new structures. The space includes six exhibition halls with ceiling heights up to 11 metres and won the RIBA Stirling Prize in 2016.

London Β· from the walk β€œSecrets of Vauxhall: Spies, Pleasure & Hidden London” Β· audio ~4 min Β· Generated

Newport Street Gallery, Newport Street, London SE11 6AJ

What collection is displayed at Newport Street Gallery in London?

Now look at this street in front of you... a row of pale red brick buildings stretching along almost half of Newport Street. It looks calm, understated, almost shy. But this quiet facade hides one of London's most extraordinary transformations.......... The original buildings here date from nineteen thirteen. They were designed by John Woodward, the London County Council's district surveyor, purpose-built as scenery painting studios for the booming Victorian theatre industry in London's West End. Think about that for a moment. Over a century ago, craftsmen stood inside these very walls... painting enormous theatrical backdrops. Forests, castles, moonlit balconies... all conjured on vast canvases, then shipped across the river to dazzle audiences in the West End.......... And who brought these forgotten workshops back to life? None other than Daymien Hirst... Britain's most famous, and perhaps most controversial, living artist. The twenty five million pound construction involved the conversion of the three listed buildings, flanked by two new build structures at either end, creating a gallery that spans the length of the street. Designed by architects Caruso St John, the gallery spans thirty seven thousand square feet and includes six exhibition spaces split over two levels. One of these spaces boasts a ceiling height of eleven metres... perfect for the oversized ambitions of what lives inside.......... And what lives inside is Hirst's personal art collection... called the "Murderme collection." It began with works he received from exchanges with his artist friends, such as Angus Fairhurst, Sarah Lucas, and Mat Collishaw. The collection, which Hirst has been acquiring since the late nineteen eighties, contains over three thousand works... ranging from Francis Bacon and Pablo Picasso to Banksy, Jeff Koons, and Tracey Emin. And it doesn't stop at paintings. Also featured are natural history specimens, taxidermy, anatomical models, and historical artefacts.......... Now here's a detail most people walk right past. A huge Led panel on the railway facade encourages passing train commuters to visit. So if you've ever ridden the train through Vauxhall and seen a glowing art display flashing by... that was This building, calling out to you.......... In twenty sixteen, the gallery won the Riba Stirling Prize... awarded to the best new building in the UK. It was the first time Caruso St John architects had won the prize. The jury called it "a bold and confident contribution to the best of UK architecture."

...... And the best part? The exhibitions are free to the public, reflecting Hirst's own words: "I believe art should be experienced by as many people as possible." From scenery painting workshops to prize-winning gallery... Newport Street proves that sometimes the most powerful art isn't just on the walls. It's in the buildings themselves.

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