Venue Review

Character: Rare-breed British Art Nouveau crossed with stripped-back modern minimal.

Funky Features: Unique castellated façade designed by Charles Harrison Townsend; attention-demanding modern café designed by Turner-prize nominated artist.

Location and History

When this Grade I-listed building opened its doors in 1901 it was the first purpose-built contemporary art gallery in Britain. The gallery has maintained its cutting edge international reputation over the past century. It staged the only show of Pablo Picasso’s masterpiece Guernica to Britain in 1937, introduced Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko to London in the late 1950s and early 1960s and staged a famous retrospective of Lucian Freud in 1993. It has been described by The Times ‘the finest arena for contemporary art anywhere in London’.

Interior

Cult architect Charles Harrison Townsend designed the Whitechapel Gallery as one of Britain’s rare examples of Art Nouveau. Beyond the extraordinary castellated façade is an architecturally sophisticated space with a thoroughly contemporary feel that complements the modernity of much of the artwork on display.

Spaces for Hire

There are several spaces available.  The lower gallery is a well of light and space with a ceiling 6 metres high supported by elegant but sturdy columns. Natural light pours through skylights onto the varnished wood floor. It makes a spectacular setting for receptions, dinners, award ceremonies and location filming. Accommodates up to 250 guests. Tom Bendham Gallery (standing reception up to 160 between both rooms)

Also on the ground level is the well-equipped auditorium that can seat 104 and can provide for any audio-visual requirement your event might demand.

The Upper and New Galleries are also well lit by natural light, including the Tom Bendham Gallery (standing reception up to 160 between both rooms) and feature varnished wood flooring; ideal for a large reception or talk. 

The next floor offers three spaces for hire: the café, meeting room and reading room (the latter available outside opening hours).  The meeting room can seat up to 30 and is ideal for a talk or seminar being temperature-controlled and equipped with a screen for projections.  Again, the white walls display artwork from the gallery’s archives such as editions or special projects.  The reading room is a relaxed break out space.

Finally the café: a specially designed and wonderfully flexible art space by Turner-prize nominee Liam Gillick.  A red banquette and matching red wires linking the globe ceiling lights contrast vividly with the grey walls and ceiling; a visually arresting space for a formal dinner (50 seated) or an informal event (standing room for 100).