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49
IV. Gallery and Architect
PETER CANNON-BROOKES
At the Press
Conference
organized
by the Tate
Gallery,
2 December
1986,
representatives
of the media had the opportunity
of visiting the Clore Gallery,
by then
almost complete,
and asking questions
of all concerned
with the project. The genesis of
the designs and the evolution
of the all-important
lighting system have already been
discussed,
and it falls to the present author to review the building
as constructed
and
place it in the context of James Stirling’s museum and art gallery designs.
In fulfilling the requirements
of the Brief, the Architect was constrained
by the narrow
financial
limitations
and the need to relate the new structure
satisfactorily
to both the
now
existing Tate Gallery
building
and the former Hospital
Commandant’s
House,
called The Lodge, in the eastern corner of the site. Indeed, the exigencies of this site,
including
the locations of the hospital buildings to be retained, and the close proximity
of
the new structure
to the boldly massed forms of the 1897 fasade of the Tate Gallery,
suggested
the outlines
of many of the solutions
adopted
by the Architect,
but the
characterization
of the original
Gallery
building
merely
as an example
of ‘Free
Classicism’
is not only careless but misleading.
The construction
subsequently
of the
wide embankment
with its expanse
of tarmac
and raised parapet,
has imposed
fundamental
changes on the relationship
between the faqade of the Gallery and the River
Thames,
and most architectural
critics have failed to notice the very strong elements of
Venetian
17th century
architecture
displayed
by Sidney Smith’s design. Originally
the
Gallery was intended
to be seen across the wide expanse of the river, and circa 1900 the
overall effect, in winter, must have echoed a Canaletto
etching. More specifically,
the
debt is to Baldassare Longhena,
and few of the generations
of art historians
visiting the
Tate Gallery seem to have realized that the central octagon is in fact a remarkably
faithful
copy, on a reduced
scale, of the main rotunda
of S. Maria della Salute in Venice.
However,
this Venetian
theme has not been exploited
by the Architect
and in his
‘architectural
conversation’
between the Main Entrance
faGade of the Clore Gallery and
the corner pavilion of the 1897 faqade, facing it across the newly created piazzetta, and
open towards
the Thames,
there is only a loose counterpoint
established,
while the
treatment
of the exterior of the Clore Gallery reveals instead the full gamut of James
Stirling’s architectural
idiosyncrasies.
The Clore Gallery is an L-shaped block and the articulation
of the exterior provides
few hints concerning
its internal organization.
However,
the height and general design of
the entablature
carried round at roof level is established
by that of the 1897 building,
and
the space below is divided up, for most of the exterior,
into a square gridwork,
four
panels high. In the corner where the Clore Gallery meets the north-eastern
range of the
1897 building,
now adjacent
to the new Schools’
Entrance,
the two systems
of
articulation
meet and the first level of Portland
Stone ashlar banding is seen to match up
partially with the top course of the rusticated basement of the 1897 design. On the other
hand, the discontinuities
evident between the string course and other mouldings
of the
old building
and the ashlar banding of the new are ignored, presumably
because of the
Tate Gallery’s
stated intention
to bury this area within the new Sculpture
Galleries
The Clore Gallery:
50
IV
22. Main Entrance
and
piazzetta
area of the
Clore Gallery. The top
edge of the heavy timber
pergola and the base of
the benches set within its
concrete plinth continue
the line of the heavily
rusticated
ground floor
of Sidney Smith’s I897
Tate Gallery building.
are certainly
Phase A of the New Museums
Project. These discontinuities
less abrasive in the piazzettu
area, in part due to the reduction
of the gridwork
to the
upper 21/2 levels only for the faqade facing south-east.
The infill of the square panels of
the gridwork
is usually of coloured plaster, but, as the south-east
range approaches
the
Lodge, this is replaced by an infilling of matching
brickwork
rising to form a stepped
planned
for
23. School’s Entrance of the Clore Gallery.
The glazed screen is approached
down
steps, or down a ramp, from the coach and
car park entered from John Islip Street at
the rear of the site.
PETER CANON-BROOKES
51
24. Main Entrance
to
the Clore Gallery and
the East Elevation facing
the Lodge. The motif of
panels of dark red facing
bricks
set within
the
gridwork
of Portland
Stone derives from the
materials
used for the
Lodge, and the broken
cornice makes a strong
feature of the windows
of the curatorial offices.
over the recessed corner windows of the Reading Room. In this area the Architect
also breaks up the parapet/attic
forms above the entablature
with deep window recesses,
and re-establishes
the gridwork
again above. Set back on the roof is part of the
air-conditioning
plant, and the wooden lattice screen which forms a balustrade
will in
due course be covered with trailing creepers which, when mature, will cascade down the
‘Growies’,
as they have been christened
by the Architect,
are an
exterior of this pavilion.
important
part of many of his designs, but it remains to be seen whether,
as in Stuttgart,
provision
should have been made for soil heating in order to prevent their roots freezing
in mid-winter.
Set between the end pavilion and the picture galleries range of the Clore Gallery,
the
Main Entrance
is established
by a vast negative pedimental
shape cut low down through
the smooth
ashlar identifying
this section. The space thereby
created is filled with a
screen of square glazed panels framed in the same apple-green
Syntha Pulvin finish as
used in Stuttgart,
with a central pillbox and revolving
door. When questioned
on his
ideas behind the design of this area, Stirling replied (2 December
1986) that he intended
for this entrance a garden house effect. For him the act of entering the Clore Gallery at
this point should not exactly be an urban experience,
more that of entering the annexe or
orangery
of a great house. The choice of green was deliberate
since ‘white has other
associations-naval,
suburban,
. . .‘, and he confirmed
that the colours
had been
selected by him with the agreement of the Trustees of the Tate Gallery. Not surprisingly,
the choice of colours within the Clore Gallery building has been of crucial importance
and the Director
of the Tate Gallery, Alan Bowness, differentiated
between the ‘public
side’ in which no works of art were exhibited
and the Architect
could be allowed a
relatively
free hand,
and the ‘paintings
side’ in which much tighter
control
was
appropriate.
Within
the Main Entrance
Hall the green of the screen provides
the strongest
colouristic
element at ground level since the floor is of naturally cleaved York Stone close
to the screen or polished London Pink Granite (from Scotland),
and the walls are pale in
colour (Fragrance).
However,
a more vigorous
note is struck by the dominant,
squat
column formed of a white cube set diagonally
on a larger pigeon-grey
cube, set in turn on
a high black cylinder-useful,
in the opinion
of the Architect,
to leave your glass on,
design
25. Interior of the Main
Entrance
Hall of the
;;r
,“,“lk,;
ko,“z
formation
counter
towards the glazed screen
and central
revolving
door.
although
it also performs
a structural
function.
From the Main Entrance
Hall access is
gained, on this level, to the Reading Room facing the Lodge, and, past the massive white
oak-veneered
sales and information
counter,
to the Auditorium
and, beyond,
the
Classroom
and related facilities. Directly opposite the entrance screen the space opens up
to the full height of the building,
drawing the visitor up the staircase to the main gallery
level. Given the size and orientation
of the ranges composing
the Clore Gallery,
it was
not possible to insert a staircase leading away from the immediate
point of entry, and
instead the Architect
chose to develop his staircase design so that it rose in two flights
across the rear of the space. The original intention
was that it should rise directly to the
powerful
archway defining the entrance
to the galleries-a
solution
reminiscent
of the
Sackler Museum
at Harvard-but
this would
have had a disastrous
effect on the
functional
planning
of the Main Entrance
Hall, and the orientation
of the staircase was
accordingly
reversed, thereby creating instead diagonal movement
across a layered space.
The powerful
archway motif was, nevertheless,
retained, and painted Viola (purple) and
Brasilia (bright blue); this provides
an almost strident
advertisement
for the treasures
beyond.
The treatment
of the staircase complex,
with a gridwork
of square panels
(Apricot
and Fragrance)
on the south-east
facing wall contrasted
with otherwise
plain
plasterwork
(again cf. the Sackler Museum Staircase with its references to the articulation
of the exterior of the building),
and a double-pitched
glazed roof with green glazing bars
above. The Staircase is undoubtedly
the most dramatic space within the ‘public side’ and
Stirling has stated that the archway/window
structure
is intended
to be ‘a signal to the
colours’, but the debate will
public . . . having a certain presence, with strong, vibrating
be long and fierce about the appropriateness
of such signals for a gallery dedicated to the
work of an early 19th century painter who was, above all, the greatest colourist.
The main gallery level is the same as that of the main suite of galleries in the old
building,
so as to allow easy access between the two, and nine large galleries are provided
(eight with daylight).
The complex
is entered,
from the Staircase,
into the largest
galleries, one
rectangular
gallery (107), which in turn opens into two smaller rectangular
for early oil-paintings
by Turner (108) and the other (109), with artificial lighting only,
PETER CANON-BROOKES
53
intended
for the display of a changing
selection
of his drawings
and water-colours.
Gallery 104, along the axis of the building,
is vaulted, and apart from providing
the direct
access to the long Gallery 101 housing Turner’s late paintings,
it opens into four flanking
galleries (102, 103, 105 and 106) w h ic h are identical except that Gallery 105 has the bay
window
overlooking
the entrance
piazzetta
and the Thames.
The planning
of these
galleries is exceptionally
skilled and, apart from the plum-coloured
walls of Gallery 109,
their walls are treated en suite, providing
a hanging line of almost 300 m. However,
the
Brief laid down that the gallery interiors ‘should be sympathetic
to the works of art and
26. The
the full
Staircase,
flooring
Apricot
27. Within the Staircase
area of the Clore Gallery
the
approach
to the
Primary
Galleries
is
dominated
by the brilliant bands of colourpurple (Viola) and bright
blue
(Brasilia)-which
define
the
powerful
archway motif.
Main Entrance Hall opens up to
height of the building over the
and the London
Pink Granite
contrasts with the square panels of
and Fragrance used for the walls.
54
The Clore
Gallery:
IV
honour them’, and the question immediately
arises as to the desirability,
in the pursuit of
that aim, of disregarding
Turner’s own strong views as to the environment
in which he
wished his paintings
to be displayed.
Stirling’s designs mark a sharp break with the dark
walls and floors preferred
in the 19th century,
and Alan Bowness
stated at the press
conference
that the pale fabric was selected by the Trustees because it was similar to that
used in the Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, and had worked well there. That
opinion is by no means universal,
and even were it so, the compromise
sought in the Yale
Center, for a wide range of paintings
of all periods, hardly applies to a suite of galleries
permanently
dedicated
to a single artist whose opinions
on the subject
were well
documented
(see Figure 35). A full-scale mock-up
of a section of one of these galleries
had been constructed
in a Tate Gallery store, originally
in order to test the lighting
systems being developed,
but this was subsequently
used in the selection process for the
wall fabrics, carpets, timbers,
etc. Thus there must have been considerable
reservations
concerning
the appropriateness
of a pale cream cotton fabric for the background
to
paintings
of this type, with their worn gilt frames, often obscured by varying amounts of
discoloured
varnish;
and the same questions
apply to the selection
of the cafe-au-lait
carpet and the pale oak used for the gallery surrounds,
etc., though
the galleries
themselves
are elegant and the quality
of the natural
light is generally
very good.
Consequently
fears have been voiced that the Trustees,
in taking themselves
the decision
as to the selection of these colours, were more influenced
by the presumed
requirements
of the Post-Modern
architecture
than those of Turner’s paintings,
and that because the
displays
are basically
static, it will be many years before the replacement
of the wall
fabrics (together
with the carpets) will be economically
justifiable.
Unfortunately,
the
‘signal to the public’ provided
on the Staircase has proved to be just that’.
Apart from the problems
posed by the colours, one of the main reservations
is to be
directed at the bay window structure which was demanded
by the Trustees and seriously
mars Gallery 105. It is virtually
impossible
to reconcile such a structure
with the design
of a symmetrical
gallery and, unless the window faces north, the penetration
of sunlight
cannot be controlled
effectively without seriously compromising
the view to the exterior
which is the v&on d'&reof the window.
Consequently,
in the light of bitter experience,
most museum
designers today seek to sidestep the problems
by locating such look-out
points outside the main display areas. Other serious problems
are posed by the visual
28. Gallery 104, looking
towards
Gallery
101.
The picture-hanging
zone, between the projecting skirting and the
bold
half-round
nonfunctional timber rail, is
covered
with
a lightcoloured
fabric
which
tones in with the pale
carpet.
PETER CANON-BROOKES
55
29. Interior of Gallery 101 showing the
sources of natural and artificial light. The
visual strength of the ceiling structures of
the Clore Gallery presents problems, accentuated by the oculi that pierce some of
them.
30. Ceiling structure of Gallery 108 of the
Chore Gallery.
strength of the ceiling structures,
with their sharply faceted covings and insistent central
shapes. Indeed,
it is difficult to justify the oculi piercing
them, except on narrowly
architectural
grounds,
since far from being functional
these bright sources of light act
only as visual distractions,
and, with good reason, it might have been assumed that the
terms of the Brief had precluded
such self-indulgences.
These difficulties
serve to
question
the extent to which it is in fact possible
to reconcile
the aesthetic
criteria
imposed by the display of 19th century paintings
with the creation of a thoroughgoing
Post-Modern
gallery interior.
In Stuttgart the problems
did not arise, in that the gallery
interiors are closely in tune with the 20th century art which they were created by Stirling
to contain,
whilst in the Neue Pinakothek
in Munich the gallery interiors
designed by
Alexander
von Branca for 19th century
paintings
avoided the worst difficulties
by
reinterpreting
the basic forms of Klenze’s designs,
in contrast
to the very personal
qualities of the exterior of the building
and its ‘public side’.
In the Clore Gallery the rooms of the ‘public side’ are often of considerable
distinction
and both the Auditorium
and the Reading
Room combine
multiple
functions
with
ingenious
planning
and not a little panache. In the former is revealed, to good effect, the
Architect’s
audacious
use of colour, as well as his penchant
for heated handrails,
whilst
the Reading Room is equipped
with its own kitchenette
for small receptions,
etc., and
can be blacked out for audiovisual
displays. Similar care and ingenuity
has been applied
to the design of the Viewing Room, in which opinions
are to be given on works of art
brought in by the public, and to the fitting out of the Classroom
which can accept up to
50 children.
These floors are either carpeted or covered in studded rubber of the type
familiar from Stuttgart,
though in a modest dark brown instead of the brilliant
green
56
The Clove Gallevy: IV
31. Interior
of the Clore
Gallery
Auditorium
with seating for 199 persons and comprehensive
equipment
in the projection
and
sound room
which also serves
Classroom beyond.
the
preferred
there! A rather different colour scheme characterizes
the Reserve Galleriesthe Gallery
staff would appear to have won here-and
the deep red painted
walls
(woodchip
paper on blockboard
linings
on studwork)
are closely
hung with the
remaining
approximately
170 oil-paintings
by Turner in the collections.
In their naked
glory late in 1968 it was difficult to visualize the effect of the massed paintings
in the
Reserve Galleries,
but there can be no doubt that, notwithstanding
the artificial lighting
and the dead spaces on the end walls, it is here that we come closest to Turner’s
own
intentions.
The plan is that these displays will be ‘topped up’ with other paintings
from
the Historic British Collection,
when required, in order to maintain the overall effect and
style of hanging,
as well as to maximize the use of the display spaces available to the Tate
Gallery.
As in the primary suite of galleries, there are no permanent
barriers to separate
visitors
from the paintings,
and reliance
is placed upon the psychological
barriers
provided
by the oak surrounds
of the flooring.
These are unusually
narrow and much
less than the arm’s length usually deemed necessary in order to discourage
visitors from
It remains
to be seen whether
this protection
will be
touching
the paint surfaces.
adequate
in practice-not
least in the light of the experience
gained in the Burrell
Collection
Museum,
and Alan Bowness’s anticipation
of at least half a million additional
visitors every year.
Within the context of the supporting
facilities, particular
attention
must be paid to the
Study Room and the Paper Conservation
Department.
The former provides print-room
workspaces
of the standard
type for twelve students,
beneath
a high north-facing
window,
and it is intended
by the Gallery
that a limited
number
of large Turner
water-colours
can be shown within this area. However,
the sunlight reflected from the
glazed surfaces of the Millbank
Tower beyond has necessitated
a comprehensive
system
of blinds which should have been unnecessary,
and specialists needing to study Turner’s
works on paper under stronger daylight are provided with a separate bench facility. All
those working
in the Study Room are under the surveillance
of the Study Room
Supervisor
seated within the raised central structure
(into which have been incorporated
the card index cabinets) and of staff working on the mezzanine
level which occupies half
the space. Time and experience
alone will provide the basis for assessing the effectiveness
57
PETER CANON-BROOKES
32. Within the Reading Room of the Clore
Gallery the prominent concrete spiral staircase gives access to the small mezzanine
office area located on top of the kitchenette
which provides modest catering facilities for
this area.
33. The
Paper
Conservation
Studio is an
important
facility provided by the new Clore
Gallery, and the intensity of the natural light, in
particular
any reflected
light from the Millbank
Tower nearby,
is controlled
by electrically
operated
blinds.
The
structural
column
has
proved to be a considerable inconvenience.
of this design and the adequacy
of the storage
capacity
for framed
works
on paper.
The
latter is perhaps
too modest
when it is recalled
that this print room,
in parallel
to that
reserved
by the Tate Gallery
for the Modern
Collection,
is intended
to serve the present
and future needs of the entiI;e Historic
British
Collection.
On the other hand, the Paper
Conservation
Department
has been operating
successfully
in its new premises
since the
autumn
of 1986 and services
the existing
Tate Gallery
collections
as well as the Turner
Collection.
The
generous
space
provided
allows
very
large
works
on
paper
to
be
The Clore Gallery: IV
,___-_
,W._.~.
4
.,
--
59
PETER CANON-BROOKES
34
(opposite). The wide variety of window designs is always an exciting element in James Stirling’s
buildings, and the Clore Gallery is not disappointing in this respect.
conserved
and the Crown
Suppliers
are particularly
proud of the specially
adapted
laboratory
furniture
which has been installed. This includes a table with a surface area of
over 250ft2 made of LOO-year-old
mahogany
cuIjboards
rescued
from the British
Museum
(Natural
History)!
The Paper Conservation
Department,
and the associated
framing workshops,
are served by the goods lift which, inter ufiu, links it to the main
gallery level and that of the Study Room.
From
the technical
viewpoint,
the Clore Gallery
establishes
within
the United
Kingdom
important
new standards
with regard to the environmental
conditions
under
which the works are displayed and stored. It is boasted that daylight alone is utilized for
some 70 per cent of the hours during which the galleries are open to the public and only
outside these times is artificial lighting required to top up or replace daylight. This is, or
soon will be, combined
with the facility of blacking out these spaces at all other times,
whilst the entire monitoring
and control of the environmental
conditions
lies with a
single
computer
provided
with
seasonal
programming.
Nevertheless,
the airconditioning
plant is intended,
under normal operating
conditions,
not to exceed 50 or
70 per cent loading,
of the air-handlers
and chillers respectively,
allowing
a generous
margin of reserve capacity, and yet plant and services are limited to only 8 per cent of the
gross building area. These impressive technological
achievements
have to be set alongside
the all-important
‘paintings
side’ of the new Clore Gallery and any assessment
of the
extent to which the gallery interiors
are ‘sympathetic
to the works of art and honour
them’. In the event, the detailed decisions with regard to the interiors of the main suite of
galleries have been taken with greater concern for the 20th century building than for the
19th century paintings,
and notwithstanding
the care lavished by the Architect
and the
professional
museum
staff alike, the environment
for the paintings
finally achieved is
seriously
at variance to them. In this James Stirling is in many respects also a victim.
35. Interior of Turner’s Gallery, by George
Jones (c. 1852), The Ashmolean Museum,
Oxford. In his second Gallery, in Queen Anne Street, London, designed in 1819,
J. M. W. Turner took as the basis of his design Sir John Soane’s Dulwich Gallery. This
painting reveals the discreet toplighting and deep red walls demanded by Turner for the
display
of his own paintings.
(Photo:
Ashmolean
Museum,
Oxford)
The Clove Gallery: Appendix
60
Note
1. One is reminded,
perhaps, of James Stirling’s own comments quoted in the exhibition catalogue of
This is Tomorrow (1956, Whitechapel
Art Galfery, London): ‘Why clutter up your building with
‘pieces’ of sculpture when the architect can make his medium so exciting that the need for sculpture
will be done away with
. the painting is as obsolete as the picture rail. Architecture,
one of the
practical arts, has along with the popular arts, deflated the position of painters and sculptors-the
fine arts.’
Appendix: Clore Gallery Scheduie of Accommodation (square metres net)
Ground Floor (entrance level)
Floor
area
(m’)
Public Areas
(4 Education Department
Auditorium
(199 seats)
Projection/Sound
room
Classroom
Store
Floor
totals
area
(m’)
220.0
25.0
64.0
7.5
316.5
(b)
Cened
Reading room
Servery
Viewing room
Cloaks/Publications/Information
Cloaks storage
Toilets
counter
59.0
7.5
10.0
22.0
24.0
40.0
165.2
Cc) Primary
Circulation
296.0
296.0
Staff Areas
(4 Paper Conservation Department
Studio
Guillotine/Frame
storage room
Framing workshop
Rest room/Office
Toilets
General circulation/Goods
lobby
113.0
74.0
52.5
36.0
10.5
33.5
319.5
(b)
Stkpervisors
Rest room
Locker rooms/Toilets
41.0
42.0
83.0
(cl
Clean&
Store
4.0
&
(4
Secondary Circulation
40
10.0
10.0