Caruso St John was selected to design Nottingham’s new Centre for Contemporary Art through an international competition in 2004. Global design practice Arup has helped in delivering the project. Nottingham Contemporary art gallery – the largest single gallery space in the East Midlands- was opened to the public on November 14, 2009.
The site for the new building is in a part of central Nottingham called the Lace Market, whose history and built form has parallels with the cast iron district of New York, giving the center a loose cultural connection to its site. The design offers a wide range of interiors that have the variety and specificity of the found spaces of a factory or warehouse, within a new building and rooms that will challenge the installation and production of contemporary art and offer new ways for performers and audiences to interact.
The exterior of the facility takes its inspiration from the 19th century buildings of Nottingham, and in particular, from the impressive facades of the Lace Market.
Set on a steeply sloping site over four stories, with a total floor area of over 3,000 square meters, the space offers four art galleries, a cafe bar, offices and a double-height performance space accommodating up to 200 people.
Due to both the historical nature of the site – dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period – and the steeply sloping topography, the site offered a number of challenges including a major program of site investigations.
Arup acted as consultant on structure, civil, geo-techniques, lighting, building services, fire and security.
