Peckham's new art gallery-cum-hair salon DKUK is a cut above

When is a hair salon not a hair salon? When it doubles as an art gallery. Daniel Kelly was a stylist before training as an artist, and he has married these two skills in DKUK, his venture in South London’s Peckham. ‘As an artist, I had been interested in making art for people outside galleries,' he says. ‘Showing art in a hair salon felt more democratic’.

Kelly, who met designer Sam Jacob at a wedding, briefed him to create a flexible, hybrid space, fitting for both haircuts and sculptures. Chairs are positioned either in front of artwork on the walls (instead of mirrors) or around a central table in front of sculptures. For the ‘reveal’, clients sit in front of a two-way mirrored display cabinet. By pushing a big red button, the mirror lights up and reflects the new hairstyle.

Jacob has also curated DKUK’s current exhibition, ‘Museum Show’. He asked architects, designers and artists – including Assemble, Baukuh, DK-CM, Fala Atelier, Fraser Muggeridge, Madelon Vriesendorp, Maio and OMMX – to create a scale model, reimagining what a museum could be.

Kelly is now training artists to become hairdressers, giving them a second income stream. ‘I felt more comfortable in the art world, so having artists at DKUK makes it a nice place to work. Everyone tells us the atmosphere isn’t like any other hair salon.’

INFORMATION

For more information, visit the DKUK website

ADDRESS

191 Queens Rd
Peckham
SE15 2NG

View Google Maps