Tate St Ives Gallery’s Cliffside Extension Nears Completion

Jamie Fobert Architects is almost done working on a cliffside extension to double the size of Tate St Ives gallery. Overlooking the Atlantic sea from a cliff in Cornwall of southwest England, the new Tate St Ives gallery sets out to provide additional space to host seasonal exhibitions and permanent collections.

The cliffside extension includes an additional four-storey building slotted between the existing gallery and a new space that will accommodate workshops, staff offices, a loading bay, and visitor facilities. The new Tate St Ives gallery, at about 483-square-metre, will sink into the hillside beside the existing building to avoid blocking views down to the sea from nearby housing.

The building is enwrapped in blue and green glazed ceramic tiles that intend to reflect the changing colors of the sky and sea. The new Tate St Ives gallery will also be topped by six room-sized skylights measuring three by five meters, and rising three and a half meters from the roof to ensure it is well lit.

The new Tate St Ives gallery also gives room for more flexibility in angles. According to the Dezeen, the skylights will be angled in the manner of taking advantage of the warmer-toned southern light, which will filter through the ceiling beams.

The roof of the new gallery also locates a public garden that will provide a pathway down from the car park to the beach, an alternative to the existing steep ramp. "One of the things we wanted to do was allow the rooftop to have a much gentler route," Fobert said.

"At the top, this is a viewing platform, which also has disabled access from the car park with views out to the sea," he continued. Meanwhile, the new Tate St Ives gallery is set to open on Oct. 14, 2017.