Hugh Broughton creates new home for the Dukes of Portland’s previously unseen art collection
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

Nottinghamshire's 15,000-acre Welbeck is surely one of England's most enterprising traditional landed estates. The seat of the Earls and Dukes of Portland since 1606, Welbeck's limestone walls house a variety of flourishing businesses including a brewery, bakery, dairy, a contemporary art gallery, a cafe, an artisanal culinary school, a farm shop and, as of March 20th 2016, a second 890 sq m gallery that will showcase the Portland's vast and previously unseen private collection of fine art and family treasures.
The second museum building ever designed by Hugh Broughton Architects (a firm who are more commonly known for creating Antarctic Research Stations), the new Harley Gallery has been built within a redundant structure that was previously used for training race horses in the Estate's central courtyard and is positioned next door to the Estate's existing contemporary art gallery.
A new entrance with a floating roof pane, walls made from handmade Danish brick and floor to ceiling glazing has been elegantly added to the original building. Here the old exterior stone wall is brought inside, its rough texture meeting Broughton's new glazed roof panels and walls with surprising ease. The clean lines coupled with the absence of the typical gallery gift shop or cafe lends the space a refreshing sense of calm – something William Parente, the grandson of the 7th Duke of Portland and current owner of the family estate, was adamant about in his brief to Broughton.
Inside, two galleries house a regularly changing display of pieces pulled from the family's vast collection, which has been assembled by the Dukes over the last 400 years. Eschewing the standard white spaces that are typical of new, contemporary galleries, Broughton opted for heritage paint colours, warm materials and details that reflect the collection's former surroundings at Welbeck Abbey -the Stately home that still functions as the Cavendish-Bentinck family's private abode.
The first gallery space, with its long, cycloidal ceiling and full length translucent roof light, is lined with oil painted portraits and headed up by a towering vitrine of the Portland family silver; while the second gallery, called the Trasury Gallery, is a much darker space that plays host to light-sensitive pieces such as a display of miniatures specially curated by Sir Peter Blake for the opening. While one third of this space features low ceilings and controlled lighting, the other two thirds are lit by north light that's funneled in by way of a barrel vault roof light fitted with an external light-sensitive louvre system.
'We wanted to create a variety of experience [within the museum], which sometimes, in modern galleries, has got lost,' reflects Hugh Broughton. 'Nonetheless it is a contemporary piece of architecture. It's a celebration of light and volume but at the same time, it's a building that draws inspiration from its context.'
The Nottinghamshire space now features a new entrance with a floating roof pane, walls made from handmade Danish brick and floor to ceiling glazing
The architect worked with clean lines in order to achieve a sense of calm, as outlined by the estate's current owner in the brief
The new building sits next to the estate's existing gallery. Both spaces show pieces pulled from the owners' vast collection, which has been assembled by the Dukes of Portland over the last 400 years
INFORMATION
The Harley Gallery opens 20 March 2016 on the Welbeck Estate in Nottinghamshire
For more information visit the Hugh Broughton website (opens in new tab)
Photography: Hufton + Crow
ADDRESS
The Harley Gallery
Welbeck, Worksop
Nottinghamshire S80 3LW
-
Janny Baek’s psychedelic ceramics are objects in flux
We speak to Korean-American architect and sculptor Janny Baek about expressing ‘vibrancy, pleasure, and hope’ through her vivid ceramics ahead of a major show at Culture Object, New York
By Pei-Ru Keh • Published
-
At home with designer Sebastian Herkner
Sebastian Herkner finds inspiration in his extensive travels around the globe and the spirit of optimism of his adopted hometown of Offenbach
By Rosa Bertoli • Published
-
A suburban apartment building in Melbourne promotes design and low-energy living
This 11-unit suburban apartment building in Melbourne's Brunswick, by Breathe Architecture and Dreamer architects, transforms a former brick warehouse into a sustainable showcase
By Jonathan Bell • Published
-
Iconic music venue New Century returns to life in Manchester
Music venue New Century in Manchester is back in action following sensitive revamp by architects Sheppard Robson
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
The finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond
For some of the world's finest brutalist architecture in London and beyond, scroll below. Can’t get enough of brutalism? Neither can we.
By Jonathan Bell • Published
-
Charles Holland’s east London house refresh offers ‘playful conservation’
Charles Holland’s east London house design for Will Wiles and Hazel Tsao Wiles brings light, colour and flair to a Victorian restoration process
By Nick Compton • Published
-
Don’t Move, Improve! 2023 longlist and what it reveals for London homes
The Don’t Move, Improve! 2023 longlist has been announced, unveiling some 50 homes and swathes of creativity in London’s residential architecture
By Harriet Thorpe • Published
-
A redesigned staircase brings openness and light in London townhouse transformation
Townhouse of Seven Stories by Architensions uses a redesigned staircase to bring openness and light to a historic London home
By Nana Ama Owusu-Ansah • Published
-
Arthur Mamou-Mani: Can parametric architecture bring us closer to nature?
London-based French architect Arthur Mamou-Mani uses digital design and fabrication techniques to create temples of spirituality
By TF Chan • Published
-
Hampstead House revives neglected Trevor Dannatt modernist home
Hampstead House by Coppin Dockray is the sensitive restoration of an overlooked Trevor Dannatt modernist home
By Shiori Kanazawa • Published
-
Air House brings light and minimalist architecture into a Victorian home
Air House by Szczepaniak Teh transforms a Victorian home for the 21st century through light and minimalist architecture
By Ellie Stathaki • Published