Info from RIBA : 15 Feb 2008
Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum - Winner Announced

The RIBA is delighted to announce the winner of the Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum Competition. The winning design (Scheme No. 69 in the competition) is by Berman Guedes Stretton, an Oxford-based firm of architects, with a branch in London, which has worked on a wide range of heritage-related projects.




The competition judges agreed unanimously that Berman Guedes Stretton’s submission was a worthy winner. They considered that their design “possessed clarity of vision and an uncomplicated consistency which gave it a simple elegance and logic”. They praised the design’s eco-friendly aspects, including use of reclaimed and self-finished materials, ground source heat pumps and natural ventilation. They also felt that the development would enhance the surrounding area, by creating a link through to Cheltenham’s oldest building, medieval St Mary’s Church.

The new development will transform Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum by greatly increasing its exhibition and display space and other facilities. Notable features include a large temporary exhibition gallery, additional space for collections (including accessible storage space which will benefit both the public and researchers), and, for the first time, dedicated space for the Art Gallery & Museum’s extensive education, outreach, life-long learning and arts development work. The design also includes improved and fully-accessible visitor facilities, including lifts, shop and café.



The competition judges were informed in their short-listing and judging by a consultation process involving a range of organisations and hundreds of visitors and residents who gave their views on comment sheets and at a series of road-shows throughout Cheltenham.

Councillor Diggory Seacome, Cheltenham Borough Council Cabinet Member for Arts & Culture, said: “The winning design will enable the Art Gallery & Museum to move into the 21st century in terms of its facilities. The arts and culture are important to Cheltenham and are valued and appreciated both by its residents and by those who visit the town at all times of the year. The RIBA Design Competition has given everyone the opportunity to examine all the possibilities and we look forward to progressing to the next stages of this important project with a design which has been so well-received.”

Jane Lillystone, Museum & Arts Manager, said: “We are delighted that so many people have shown such an interest in the design competition and in the future of Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum. The development will not happen overnight, but we are greatly encouraged by the support we have received so far, including by organisations such as the Friends. We are very grateful to the Royal Institute of British Architects and to the judges for their time and expertise, which has taken us this far.”

Gary Gollins of Berman Guedes Stretton commented on their win: ““Berman Guedes Stretton is delighted to have won the RIBA competition for the Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum and we look forward to commencing a dialogue with our new client and working with them on the development of our design. It is gratifying, when faced with so many high quality submissions, that the jury panel have selected what we believe is essentially a very simple and straightforward proposal. We are particularly pleased that the energy and enthusiasm we have invested in the competition will now be allowed to continue through to the realisation of this important project.”



English Architecture

Cheltenham’s Art Gallery & Museum is Building for a New Future
A sustainable development for Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum

Info from RIBA : 25 Oct 2007

It’s down to four, from RIBA Competition’s 77 entries!

Four design solutions have now been shortlisted by the judging panel for the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) competition, which attracted 77 submissions from all over the UK, Europe and the world.

In their deliberations, the expert panel of judges took into account the views of the public and Advisory Panel, including representatives from the Friends of the Art Gallery & Museum, and others involved in, and affected by the development.

Richard Brearley, the RIBA Adviser, said:
‘The judges were very impressed at the standard of the submissions and with the consultative process which has taken place. It was a difficult task to narrow the entries down to four, but we are confident that those chosen to go forward to the next stage meet the competition brief of being unique, functional, eco-friendly and achievable.’

The four shortlisted designs were all produced by British teams:
Submission No. 7: Ramboll Whitbybird, a Manchester firm, which has branches in Birmingham and Bristol and has worked on several projects in Cheltenham and Gloucestershire;
Submission No. 14: David Grindley Architects, based in Milton Keynes, which has worked on a wide range of projects in the public and private sector;
Submission No. 51: Ellis Williams, a London-based firm of architects, with experience in culture sector projects in the UK and abroad;
Submission No. 69: Berman Guedes Stretton, an Oxford based architect with a branch in London, and has worked on a variety of projects in these cities.

Jane Lillystone, Museum & Arts Manager, said:
‘We are delighted to be able to announce the shortlist for the competition and would like to thank the Royal Institute of British Architects, the judges and everyone who has contributed to the decision-making process so far. We will be displaying the four shortlisted design solutions at the Art Gallery & Museum, around Cheltenham, and on our websites over the next few weeks, so that people can see them and make further comments. During this period, the four shortlisted teams will be answering questions arising from their submissions and preparing for detailed interviews by the judges in early December.


Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum’s 'Building for the Future' development

Following a strategic review of culture in Cheltenham (Cheltenham Borough Council, Cheltenham Festivals and Arts Council England, South West), the RIBA competition has been held to seek designs for larger temporary exhibition spaces, enhanced visitor facilities and improved access to the collections. The shortlisting announcement marks a major step towards an achievable development, which will transform the building, collections and the Art Gallery & Museum’s work.



Gloucestershire Buildings

Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum, established between 1899 and 1907, is the main art gallery and museum in Cheltenham and the Cotswolds. It has a number of outstanding collections including:

- Arts & Crafts Movement collection, which has nationally Designated status in recognition of its outstanding importance and includes furniture, jewellery, paintings and the Emery Walker Library
- Costume, furniture and artefacts showing Cheltenham’s Regency history
- The Wider World: work by and artefacts of Cheltenham-born Antarctic explorer Edward Wilson; exhibits from Australia, China, India and Africa, brought back by Cheltenham travellers. Collections on the county and region’s history from pre-history to the 21st century;
- Paintings and works on paper: 17th-tcentury Dutch masters; works by Guardi, Vasari; 20th-century artists including Vanessa Bell and Stanley Spencer.

The Art Gallery also runs extensive education, outreach, lifelong learning and arts development programmes with young people and other groups in Cheltenham and Gloucestershire.

Architecture Competition

Gloucester Building Competition

World Architecture : e-architect - a guide to key buildings across the globe

Comments / photos for the Cheltenham Art Gallery page welcome:
info@e-architect.co.uk

Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum - page : adrian welch / isabelle lomholt

Cheltenham’s Art Gallery & Museum - new building development: www.cheltenhamartgallery.org.uk/buildingforanewfuture

Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum - www.cheltenham.artgallery.museum