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cheltenham art gallery

the cheltenham art gallery & museum is one of cheltenham’s key cultural facilities and public buildings. it is situated in good position for visitor accessibilty, on the inner ring-road of the town, close to tourist information, shopping areas and pedestrianised streets. currently the art gallery & museum is compromised by poor visibility, difficult access to its main collections and by limited exhibition, storage and other spaces essential to the provision of a quality public art gallery and museum service.

the refurbishment and extension project is based on four concepts: 

1. interruption

the building completes the buildable volume of the urban block between clarence street and chester walk. the extension is respectful and designed to integrate within the urban whole, through contextual design decisions: material continuity by means of the use of the same stone as that on the library facade; height continuity continuing the levels of the cornice lines and parapet of no. 51 clarence street; plane continuity, maintaining the building line of the neighbouring building; stylistic continuity, adopting the order of the existing openings in a contemporary manner on the new elevation.

however on the clarence street side, where the majority of visitors will arrive, discontinuity is created by the interruption of the continuous façade, the extraction of a portion of the urban block. this interruption or break in the façade generates tension and has a high appellative power. the resultant empty space allows the museum to draw attention to itself, functioning as a beacon at a urban morphological level. 

2. symbiosis

the extension generates a dialogue between the original building and the existing, and a mutual re-evaluation. the empty space generated by the discontinuity creates tension and contrast with the library building, conversing with and re-evaluating the tower element at the corner of it. this tower and the empty space compliment one another, mutually reassessing each other and through their tension create an attraction at this point.the existing building is neo-classical, with moulds and relieves. the extension is modern and austere, flat planes and without decoration. 

3. embrace

the empty space generated by the discontinuity becomes a transition space. the museum extends its limits to the outside within this controlled empty space, where it merges with the street.

the more public spaces of the museum are located on the ground floor of the building. the bar open onto an external terrace in good weather, giving life to the exterior space, which becomes an extension of the pavement. the entrance is situated behind, with double access, encouraging movement across the space, bringing the public space and the street into the interior of the building. at an urban level the space creates a link between clarence street and chester walk, connecting st matthew’s church directly with st mary’s church and park, which also allows ‘short-cut’ access to the library.

4. beacon

on the interior facade of the empty space, the building projects itself, announces itself, makes itself known. there is a great contrast with the massive, discrete and contextual exterior. the contrast intensifies at a material level, creating a great appellative strength. the walls are abstract, austere, white and light. they become the museum communication medium (calendar of events, temporary exhibition promotion material and collection highlights). and at night it becomes a lightbox, a ‘choji’, intensifying even more this contrast and its beacon-like power.

adress: clarence street, cheltenham, uk

surface area: 3.000 m²

competition: september 2007

architects: vora arquitectura (pere buil castells and toni riba galí)

project team: cristina ros, arnau boronat, beatriz borque

client: riba, art gallery&museum

images: arnau boronat, cristina ros.