Claridge’s ArtSpace opens with exhibition by Damien Hirst
Opening of Claridge's ArtSpace with art from Damien Hirst
As the art world looks to London, Claridge’s, the legendary hotel in the heart of Mayfair, will unveil a newly created Claridge’s ArtSpace today, Tuesday 12th October 2021, the eve of Frieze 2021. Opening its doors for the first time, the space will exhibit a collection of work by artist Damien Hirst entitled ‘Sunshine’, presented by HENI. Claridge’s ArtSpace, which is accessed by an entrance on the newly restored Claridge’s façade on Brooks Mews, engineered by Jim Mackey, has been designed by John Pawson, to be a multi-functional space, set to house a café and art store (opening early 2022) as well as the permanent gallery.
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A great idea to include your hotel in an exhibition in the vicinity, we visited the Grand Resort Bad Ragaz back in 2015 when it was part of Bad RagARTz. Many sculptures from the exhibition can be found in and around the hotel. So for those who love to visit art exhibitions, London is the place to be the coming week from 13 till the 17th of October. And don’t forget to check out the inaugural exhibition ‘Sunshine’ by Damien Hirst at Claridge’s ArtSpace.
Claridge’s ArtSpace | Rotating two-month’s exhibitions and shows as of 2022
The reveal of Claridge’s ArtSpace further cements Claridge’s position at the heart of the thriving Mayfair art community, both during the annual Frieze art fair and throughout the year. Claridge’s will invite its long-standing friends and gallerists within the art world to stage rotating two-month exhibitions and shows. The 2022 programme will shortly be announced, with a different curator for each show, and an interactive programme of talks and events around each exhibition. This entirely new art space in the heart of London has been designed with approachability at its core, with free access to all. It is intended to become an informal daily drop in for the local art community and Londoners alike, where they can see an inspiring new exhibition, find an original print, or simply enjoy breakfast, lunch or coffee and cake at the upcoming café.
Inaugural exhibition by Damien Hirst | Cryptocurrency accepted
Claridge’s ArtSpace will be launched with an inaugural exhibition, ‘Sunshine’, featuring works by long-time friend of the hotel, artist Damien Hirst, presented by HENI. The works, which will be shown together for the very first time, include a series of the artist’s brilliant pipe cleaner animals and examples of his colour chart series. For this exhibition, HENI will accept cryptocurrency as payment for the artworks. It will also be possible to purchase artworks in the exhibition using Tenders from The Currency, Hirst’s first NFT collection. In addition, from 14th October which is the start of the exchange window for The Currency series, Claridge’s will serve as the exclusive location for pick-up of physical works, which up to now have been stored in a secure vault in the UK. Visitors to ‘Sunshine’ can look forward to receiving digital attendance tokens, in the form of HENI POAPs, which HENI will be issuing for the very first time.
About The ArtSpace
The space is designed by John Pawson, a long-time collaborator of Claridge’s investor Paddy McKillen, having designed his first office in Dublin over 35 years ago. An elegant new staircase will lead down from the ground floor to the ArtSpace located in the hotel’s refurbished Victorian basement. With a ceiling height of nearly 4m and a footprint of 27m x 10m, the ArtSpace will be one of the largest art galleries in Mayfair, with an expanse of contemporary white walls and a pale grey terrazzo floor. The first specifically designed designated art gallery in any luxury hotel in the world, it has been created to museum-quality finish, incorporating temperature control and dedicated art lighting. This newly created ArtSpace is part of the ground-breaking engineering project that has been undertaken at Claridge’s over the past five years. It has been carved out by hand from the London clay underneath the hotel, with the clay being donated to Claridge’s favourite artists for creating ceramics.
Website: Claridge's
