The Gardner Arts Centre, closed since early 2007, is to be re-opened by 2012 - photo: Nick Blumsom
The Gardner Arts Centre, closed since early 2007, is to be re-opened by 2012 - photo: Nick Blumsom

The Gardner Arts centre, which has been shut since April 2007 due to funding cuts is to be reopened, the University of Sussex Council announced last week.

The Council has approved refurbishment work which could start as early as 2009 and which could be ready in time for the University’s 50th anniversary in 2011-2012.

The grade II listed building, designed by Sir Basil Spence and named “one of the south coast’s most thriving art centres” by The Guardian in 2006, currently holds a 482 capacity theatre. It has in the past presented over 300 theatre, dance, music, comedy, film and family events every year, as well as adult education classes and exhibitions.

Brighton and Hove city council withdrew the venue’s annual £30,000 grant in November 2006, with effect from April 2007. The council funding was redirected to city centre venues, after concerns that the centre was not servicing the city itself. Despite Arts Council England describing it as showing “commitment to presenting and supporting the best emerging companies”, the Gardner was unable to meet criteria that would attract Arts Council funding. The board therefore took the decision to close the centre after its 2007 spring season, due to much needed refurbishment work.

The newly approved and much needed £3.8m – £4.8m investment will provide a flexible auditorium with a mixture of up to three stages, up to 500 seats; an exhibition gallery; a café; and three studios of different sizes. The proposal, which Council approved at its meeting on 21 November, proposes that the Gardner building becomes the focus of a new Centre for Practice-Based Research in the Humanities, playing a central role in the academic programmes and research of the arts and humanities schools.

The Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Paul Layzell, says: “The Gardner building is set to become an exciting and stimulating venue for the exploration, presentation and study of creativity and the creative arts.”
Plans are set to include links to Brighton’s several festival seasons, exchanges with other universities, conferences and involvement from independent, national and international arts companies.

A strong emphasis is also being placed on interior, Sussex student driven activities:
shows, exhibition and performance through graduate shows to student-promoted activity. This will come as a welcome relief to the Sussex University Drama society who are currently limited to extremely small venues, such as the Falmer Debating Chamber.

Current plans are sill tentative, however, as consultations with possible external stake-holders, such as Arts Council England and Brighton festival, are yet to be held. The Business case for investment is set to be prepared for 2009.

Categories: News

4 Comments

Gardner Arts building set to reopen

  1. I think the reopening of the Gardner Arts is fantastic news not only for the university but for theatre companys’ in the local community too. There is a massive shortage of large performance spaces in Brighton, and considering our standing as one of the hubs of performance arts in the country we desperately need more!

    Andy Stoner
    City Theatre Company

  2. An excellent article, Dunya, and I think that the Gardner Arts centre opening is a good thing because there aren’t enough arts centres in this country and we need more.

  3. Good piece, and great to hear the Gardner is re-opening. It is so important to arts students to have a space where they can actually hone their skills and gain confidence. This morning there were three film students in my house making a short film about writing, reading and our local library. One was from France, one from China, one from Italy. They all agreed the UK is the best place to do practice-based degrees and masters’ degree is the arts. Sussex can be at the forefront of that with this new centre.

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