Damien Hirst Unveils Plans For New Gallery In Vauxhall

By SamF Last edited 144 months ago
Damien Hirst Unveils Plans For New Gallery In Vauxhall

If you are someone who actively avoids Damien Hirst, life in London is becoming increasingly challenging. It seems not a day goes by without a new story emerging around the controversial artist. Yesterday, in an interview with the Observer Hirst finally revealed plans for his own personal art space. There were rumblings on the subject as long as six years ago. It seems these rumblings have come to fruition in what sounds like a truly magnificent gallery.

The space will take up an entire street — Newport Street in Vauxhall to be exact — and will display over 2,000 pieces from Hirst’s personal collection. This collection includes work by Francis Bacon, Banksy and, of course, Hirst himself.

Newport Street itself is a small stretch of road set back from the Albert Embankment. The exact plans are yet to be unveiled but it is safe to assume that, with the space required, Hirst will be annexing the Beaconsfield Gallery, the current incumbent of Newport Street's railway arches.

With the recent redevelopment of Vauxhall pleasure gardens, the near-completion of St George’s Wharf, the development of Embassy Gardens underway and the new US Embassy building in the pipeline, Vauxhall seems to be awash with exciting prospects.

The gallery is set to open in 2014. That gives us one whole year to catch our breath after the Gagosian and Tate blockbusters.

Photo by vitamino from the Londonist Flickr pool.

Last Updated 12 March 2012