Nottinghamshire's 15,000-acre Welbeck is surely one of England's most enterprising traditional landed estates. The seat of the Earls and Dukes of Portland since 1606, Welbeck's limestone walls house a variety of flourishing businesses including a brewery, bakery, dairy, a contemporary art gallery, a cafe, an artisanal culinary school, a farm shop and, as of March 20th 2016, a second 890 sq m gallery that will showcase the Portland's vast and previously unseen private collection of fine art and family treasures.
The second museum building ever designed by Hugh Broughton Architects (a firm who are more commonly known for creating Antarctic Research Stations), the new Harley Gallery has been built within a redundant structure that was previously used for training race horses in the Estate's central courtyard and is positioned next door to the Estate's existing contemporary art gallery.
A new entrance with a floating roof pane, walls made from handmade Danish brick and floor to ceiling glazing has been elegantly added to the original building. Here the old exterior stone wall is brought inside, its rough texture meeting Broughton's new glazed roof panels and walls with surprising ease. The clean lines coupled with the absence of the typical gallery gift shop or cafe lends the space a refreshing sense of calm – something William Parente, the grandson of the 7th Duke of Portland and current owner of the family estate, was adamant about in his brief to Broughton.
Inside, two galleries house a regularly changing display of pieces pulled from the family's vast collection, which has been assembled by the Dukes over the last 400 years. Eschewing the standard white spaces that are typical of new, contemporary galleries, Broughton opted for heritage paint colours, warm materials and details that reflect the collection's former surroundings at Welbeck Abbey -the Stately home that still functions as the Cavendish-Bentinck family's private abode.
The first gallery space, with its long, cycloidal ceiling and full length translucent roof light, is lined with oil painted portraits and headed up by a towering vitrine of the Portland family silver; while the second gallery, called the Trasury Gallery, is a much darker space that plays host to light-sensitive pieces such as a display of miniatures specially curated by Sir Peter Blake for the opening. While one third of this space features low ceilings and controlled lighting, the other two thirds are lit by north light that's funneled in by way of a barrel vault roof light fitted with an external light-sensitive louvre system.
'We wanted to create a variety of experience [within the museum], which sometimes, in modern galleries, has got lost,' reflects Hugh Broughton. 'Nonetheless it is a contemporary piece of architecture. It's a celebration of light and volume but at the same time, it's a building that draws inspiration from its context.'
The Nottinghamshire space now features a new entrance with a floating roof pane, walls made from handmade Danish brick and floor to ceiling glazing
The architect worked with clean lines in order to achieve a sense of calm, as outlined by the estate's current owner in the brief
The new building sits next to the estate's existing gallery. Both spaces show pieces pulled from the owners' vast collection, which has been assembled by the Dukes of Portland over the last 400 years
INFORMATION
The Harley Gallery opens 20 March 2016 on the Welbeck Estate in Nottinghamshire
For more information visit the Hugh Broughton website
Photography: Hufton + Crow
ADDRESS
The Harley Gallery
Welbeck, Worksop
Nottinghamshire S80 3LW
-
Indian artist Rithika Merchant on her fantastical show set for Dior couture: ‘It’s about building a wonderland’Rithika Merchant tells Wallpaper* the story behind her immersive work ‘The Flowers We Grew’, which backdropped Maria Grazia Chiuri’s Alice in Wonderland-inspired S/S 2025 couture show in Paris yesterday (27 January 2025)
-
2025 Serpentine Pavilion: this year's architect, Marina Tabassum, explains her designThe 2025 Serpentine Pavilion design by Marina Tabassum is unveiled; the Bangladeshi architect talks to us about the commission, vision, and the notion of time
-
NAMM 2025: 10 take-aways from the world's most important music showCalifornia's annual NAMM show brings musical instrument manufacturers big and small to show off their latest wares and audio innovations. Here are ten of the best from 2025
-
2025 Serpentine Pavilion: this year's architect, Marina Tabassum, explains her design
The 2025 Serpentine Pavilion design by Marina Tabassum is unveiled; the Bangladeshi architect talks to us about the commission, vision, and the notion of time
-
We celebrate the emerging London architects to be excited aboutThese emerging London architects are some of the capital's finest ground-breakers, movers and shakers; heralding a new generation of architecture
-
A library in a London telephone box? This is a charming reading nook full of surprisesSet in a restored London telephone box, Upper Street Little Library is a cosy beacon to encourage reading to the wider community
-
This revamped east London terraced house is a music lover’s dreamAn east London terraced house gets a boost of personality and sustainability thanks to Archmongers, whose transformation makes room for the owners’ creativity and extensive record collection
-
This elegant infill project slots beautifully into the London streetscapeIn this infill project, a row of garages in Blackheath, south-east London, has been replaced by a contemporary family home by local practice Mailen Design
-
Don’t Move, Improve 2025: the 14 London homes adding design oomph to the everydayThe shortlist for Don’t Move, Improve 2025 has been announced, revealing 14 residential projects across London that add value and pizazz to their inhabitants’ daily lives
-
Space House: explore the brutalist London landmark’s new chapterSpace House, a landmark of brutalist architecture by Richard Seifert & Partners in London’s Covent Garden, is back following a 21st-century redesign by Squire & Partners and developer Seaforth Land
-
Fire-damaged Walworth Town Hall shows off majestic transformationWalworth Town Hall gets a much-needed reimagining by Feix & Merlin, who transformed the heritage building into a contemporary workspace and a hub of its local community in south London
