Contemporary Art Gallery Conversion – Conversion is one of those architectural projects that fascinates us the most, especially when it comes to giving new life to dilapidated historical buildings. Renovated art exhibition spaces provide a particularly attractive example given their demands for light, flow and adaptability.
From a former slaughterhouse to an ex-skating rink, we’ve gathered together some of our favorite art gallery conversions from across Europe. Each transformation is based on both a visionary design philosophy and respect for the building’s original heritage.
Contemporary Art Gallery Conversion
On an ordinary street in Kreuzberg, there is a Brutalist symbol of 1960s Berlin: the former church and community center of St. Agnes, a windowless, cubic concrete structure arranged around a landscaped courtyard. “The building is lit from above, and is very rough and raw on the outside but soft and shiny on the inside – ideal for showcasing art.” Originally built in 1967 by Werner Deutmann, West Berlin’s director of urban development, the heritage-listed space was acquired in 2011 by renowned Berlin gallerist and art dealer Johann König, who commissioned local architect Arno Brandlhuber to transform the stalwart. was commissioned, which involved approximately 200 tonnes of concrete and the construction of a new level. Instead of windows, light streams into the gallery from skylights and wall cracks. “The building is top-lit, and very rough and raw on the outside but soft and bright on the inside – ideal for showing art,” says Koenig of the area.
Living Under The Same Roof
On the volcanic island of São Miguel in Portugal’s Azores archipelago, a warehouse complex that once housed tobacco and wine factories is today a contemporary art center. Porto studio Menos e Mais Arquitectos and João Mendes Ribeiro worked together on its conversion. Two contrasting structures – one white, the other painted in dark basalt – are located between the existing stone warehouse buildings, creating a dialogue between the original buildings and their new purpose in a play on light and shadow.
In total, the buildings provide 12,000 square meters of space for exhibition galleries, studios, laboratories, performing arts rooms and artists’ residences. Talking about the intention behind his approach, the architects say, “The design is committed to the quality of what exists (…) The new buildings are placed next to the existing buildings in a serene way – a “Underlining the architectural memory of a certain period and the new addition.” The adaptation was shortlisted for the Mies van der Rohe Award in 2015.
“It was a very low-cost improvement – simple but with design and respect for the area and current developments.”
Mallorcan architecture studio Munac was commissioned by local artist Dolors Comas to transform a dilapidated farmhouse set amidst wheat fields on the outskirts of Pla de na Tessa, a small town on the island, into an art space with dual function There was: a private studio and a gallery space open to the public. The conversion preserved the original structure of the farmhouse, removed the overgrown plants that surrounded it, and stripped the exterior back to its original building materials: a combination of earth and straw.
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An L-shaped extension featuring dry stone walls was added, and the interior – which required high ceilings and natural light – was replaced with concrete floors, painted white to contrast the dark ceiling beams. The walls were plastered. A glazed entrance was created to divide the private studio space from the public gallery, which overlooks the prickly pear plants planted in the courtyard. “It was a wonderful location for Dolors,” says architect Munar Comas, who moved his studio in search of the tranquility – air, vegetation and peace – of this new area. “It was a very low-cost improvement – simple but with design and respect for the area and current developments.”
Set amid the Burgundy vineyards, a Romanesque-style building founded in the early 12th century by Hugh II, Duke of Burgundy, has served a variety of purposes over the centuries. Originally built as a hospital for people suffering from leprosy, the building was repeatedly renovated and by the 19th century had become an agricultural farm. Despite being registered as a historical monument in 1926, it remained abandoned for many years. In 2015, Paris-based Jung Architecture worked with Simon Burri Heritage to transform the building into a multi-purpose space.
The former chapel and poorhouse were repurposed to host an art exhibition space, while using a harmonious combination of traditional construction methods and materials to pay homage to the history and culture of the area, as well as a space for wine tasting and public events. An extension was added. “For the expansion we were searching for a material to create a monolithic shell. We decided to use Azanger zinc, and this is the first time it has been used in France” explained the architects. Today, the former Leprosérie de Meursault is registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Borgo Camillo Benso di Cavour, 24, 31100 Treviso TV, Italy Transformed by Heinz Tesser and Studio Maas in 2010
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A 15th-century Treviso monastery with a turbulent past was transformed into an art gallery by Austrian architect Heinz Tesser and Italian firm Studio Mas, who together won a 2010 tender to transform the historic building. The focal point of its renovation was the cruciform facade, rebuilt from perforated artificial stone and surrounded by walls made of a mixture of Marmorino polished plaster, marble and white cement.
Behind the facade, a white concrete extension leads to an interior courtyard that houses a ticket counter and bookshop as well as an exhibition space and conference rooms. Talking about the project, the architects say, “[The building] needed a new facade, more appropriate to its institutional role and its position in the center of the ancient city […] Reconstructed in 1952 The existing masks were completely lacking in quality.” Today the Museo Bailo houses a collection of 20th-century art, including the sculptures of Adam and Eve by Treviso-born sculptor Arturo Martini (1889–1947).
A large hangar in the Saint-Gilles district of Brussels, which once housed an ice rink named ‘Le Royal Skating’, has recently reopened as La Patinoire Royale, an exhibit of contemporary art. The intervention, carried out by John-Paul Hermant architects, Camille Polonceau and interior designer Pierre Yovanovitch, was minimal in preserving the structure’s neo-classical framework, iron roof trusses and rosette windows. The building’s facade, buttresses and wooden ceilings were restored, and white staircases leading up to the 3000 square meters of polished concrete floors were installed, guiding visitors around the space.
Yovanovitch recalled that when she first proposed the staircase plan, “They asked me, ‘Are you crazy?’ You’re going to waste the place.’ But I insisted. The volume of the stairs is very dynamic because it is not in the center but on the left.” When faced with the choice of freeing up the space at the beginning of the overhaul. declined, saying that “between contemporary and minimalist, the building is history.”
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Inspired by the principle of social sustainability, Oscar Miguel Arce Álvarez transformed a former slaughterhouse in the rural Spanish village of Traspinedo into an exhibition space and center for the surrounding community. Working on a limited budget of €180,000, the architect worked to complete the building with a dual purpose: first, to maintain the integrity of the existing structure, which was built using traditional construction methods to reflect its surroundings. was, and second, turn it into a multi-functional space to serve the village in a myriad of ways, from co-working spaces and training centers to storage facilities.
To this end, the center’s furniture is flexible: benches are foldable, and cabinets double as storage space and room dividers. Summarizing the philosophy of the project, the architects describe the renovation as “a creative approach taken from the surrounding formal contexts, with the aim of making the CIR a building owned by the neighbours.”
Moscow’s GES2 power plant and its surrounding two-hectare grounds on the banks of the Moscow River will be converted into an art museum and cultural center by Renzo Piano Building Workshop. Modeled after London’s Tate Modern museum, the renovation of the 100-square-metre-long main space and 23-metre-high turbine is expected to be completed by 2019, and will include exhibition halls, a sculpture park, auditorium, library, bookshop, amphitheatre, and a library. And café. In a statement about the project, Renzo Piano Building Workshop says, “GES2 will become an exciting cultural destination, providing new opportunities for artists and audiences locally, nationally and internationally and for V-A-C. The first major venue will be in the city of Moscow. ”Australian studio PHAB Architects has transformed a former condensed-milk packing shed into an art gallery and workshop, without losing the building’s industrial character and materiality (+ slideshow).
Brisbane-based PHAB Architects renovated and expanded a 100-year-old building in Toogoolawa, South East Queensland, providing a contemporary art gallery, as well as a sculpture garden and workshop to the local community.
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Somerset Regional Art Gallery – The facility, called The Condensatory, aims to bring a new purpose to the site of the Nestlé condensed milk factory, which was once the focal point of the economic and social life of the Queensland city.
The shed was the only building to survive the 1951 fire that destroyed the factory, and
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