£29.7 million transformation to 'reimagine Tate Liverpool for 21st century'

The gallery will be undergoing a major transformation costing £29.7 million. Credit: Rob Battersby

Tate Liverpool is to close temporarily as part of a £29.7 million refurbishment.

The gallery, at Royal Albert Dock, will shut its doors from Monday 16 October, with the aim of reopening in 2025.

Ahead of the closure, the venue will extend its exhibition JMW Turner With Lamin Fofana: Dark Waters until 24 September.

While closed, it will continue to host events and one-off projects using other spaces in the city.

Director Helen Legg said: "Since Tate Liverpool opened 35 years ago, the experiences our audiences want to have, and the kind of work artists want to make, have both changed significantly.

"So now is the time for us to reimagine the gallery for the 21st century and strengthen the connection between art and people."

Current exhibitions will be extended so guests can see them before the gallery closes. Credit: Gareth Jones

She continued: "Announcing this temporary closure gives everyone who loves Tate Liverpool a chance to return to the gallery before we begin the transformation process.

"It is also important to us that our audiences know they will still be able to engage with Tate Liverpool during the closure period through the high-quality work we deliver within the city’s communities."

Funding for the refurbishment includes a grant of £10 million from the government’s levelling up fund, awarded as part of a combined £20 million bid with National Museums Liverpool for their waterfront projects.

The gallery said its off-site programme for 2024 will be announced in the coming months and will ensure it retains a "close connection to the local community" while its doors remain closed.

Ahead of its closure, Tate Liverpool will also be one of the venues hosting exhibitions for the 12th edition of Liverpool Biennial, open from June to September.

Housed in a converted warehouse on Liverpool’s waterfront, Tate Liverpool was opened in 1988 by the now King.

It is part of the Tate collective of four major art galleries, alongside London’s Tate Britain and Tate Modern, and Cornwall’s Tate St Ives.

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