Duke Street St James’s exterior

Thomas Dane

Refurbishment of Grade 2 listed Mayfair showroom for one of London’s leading contemporary art galleries.

Opened in 2004 on Duke Street St James’s, the gallery commissioned David Kohn Architects to create a new space further down the street for staging artists’ projects and more informal exhibitions.

The design involved stripping back layers of linings throughout the ground and basement interiors to reveal highly idiosyncratic ceiling structures. Free-standing white gallery walls were then inserted to create spaces with more provisional and theatrical characters than usual for the area. In order to make the interior nonetheless consistent with the St James’s vernacular of vitrines and refined finishes, a herringbone oak floor and black entrance display cabinet were incorporated.

David Kohn Architects was shortlisted for ‘Refurbishment Architect of the Year’ 2012 on the basis of Thomas Dane Gallery and the White Building.