The Tate St Ives was built between 1988 and 1993 on the site of an old gasworks and looks over Porthmeor beach. In 2015, it received funding for an expansion, doubling the size of the gallery, and closed in October 2015 for refurbishment. The gallery re-opened in October 2017 and is among the most visited attractions in the UK.[1]
In 1980,Tate group started to manage theBarbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden, dedicated to the life and work of the renowned St Ives artist. The group decided to open a museum in the town, to showcase local artists, especially those already held in their collection.[2]
In 1988, the group purchased a former gasworks and commissioned architectsEldred Evans andDavid Shalev, to design a building for the gallery in a similar style to the gas works.[3] The building began in 1991, funded by theEuropean Regional Development Fund, theHenry Moore Foundation and donations from the public.[3] It included arotunda at the centre of the gallery, looking overPorthmeor Beach and was completed in 1993. The gallery opened in June 1993, the second of the Tate's regional galleries afterTate Liverpool, receiving more than 120,000 visitors before the end of the year.[2]
In 1999, to celebrate thesolar eclipse (as St Ives was predicted to be the first British town to witness the event), Tate St Ives held an exhibition calledAs Dark as Light, exhibiting work fromGarry Fabian Miller, Gia Edzveradze and Yuko Shiraishi alongside art from local schoolchildren.[4]
In 2012, Tate St Ives ran a competition for a design team to build a major extension, which was won byJamie Fobert Architects.[5] In January 2015, the Tate St Ives received £3.9 million to contribute towards the new extension,[6] with the intention of doubling the available space in order to accommodate tourists throughout the year, without having to close between exhibitions. The building contract was awarded toBAM Construct UK, who would be adding a 1,200 square metres (13,000 sq ft) extension designed byJamie Fobert, with the original architect's involvement in works to the existing building.[7][8] The Tate St Ives was closed in October 2015 for these works and remained closed for two years.[9]
Tate St Ives reopened in October 2017,[10] with the inaugural exhibition in the new 500m2 gallery a solo show by contemporary sculptor Rebecca Warren, 'All that heaven allows'.[11]
