Pallant House Gallery, New Wing, Chichester
The project proposes a large extension to the existing grade-I listed Pallant House Gallery, a former Georgian house in the middle of Chichester. It is designed around the nature of the collection, which centres on British art of the 20th century.

The project combines the refurbishment of the historic museum galleries, the display of a permanent collection of fine and decorative arts, and the creation of temporary exhibition spaces. The new galleries are rooms, scaled to relate to the rooms in the Georgian house. Each room has a central skylight, oriented and louvred to give controlled daylight to the galleries at a low enough light level so that emphasis can be provided by artificial light, but at a high enough level so the galleries will visually \'breathe\' as clouds pass over.

In addition to the new gallery spaces the New Wing provides a space for the reserve collection, an education room, a restaurant, a shop, a library, a lecture space, a meeting room and workshops. In addition an important new garden has been designed by Christopher Bradley-Hole.

Particular attention has been given to producing a sustainable design as well as minimising the costs in use of the building. The structural piles incorporate a system of pipework that uses groundwater to minimise the use of energy in the heating and cooling of he building. Internally the design includes Gallery hanging walls separated by an air space from the loadbearing masonry walls. This serves to avoid a negative microclimate on the exterior walls and to slow rates of change in temperature and humidity.

The building received Planning permission in 2001 and had Heritage Lottery Funding. Construction work started in January 2003 and the gallery opened to great acclaim in June 2006. It has won Gulbenkian Museum of the Year, RIBA and Civic Trust Awards, among others.
project:Pallant House Gallery, New Wing
location:Chichester , West Sussex
client:The Trustees of Pallant House
dates:1994 - 2007
cost:£5 million
area:Existing: 880sqm. New: 1,920sqm
awards:2007 - The Civic Trust Award
2006 - Access for Disabled people to Arts Premises Today (ADAPT) Trust
Excellence in Access Award
2007 - Brick Awards
  • Supreme Winner
  • Best Public Building
  • Best Landscape Project
  • Sustainability Award Finalist
  • Refurbishment Award Finalist

2007 - The Gulbenkian Prize for Museums & Galleries
2007 - RIBA Award - Southeast
2007 - Museums & Heritage Awards
  • Educational Initiave - Commended
  • Permanent Exhibition - Commended

2007 - The National Lottery Awards - Best Arts Project
- Finalist
2007 - Sussex Heritage Trust Award
press:2003 - Building Design


2006 - The Architect's Journal