Tate Liverpool reveals 'once-in-a-generation' £29.7m revamp details

The "once-in-a-generation renewal" of Tate Liverpool will see it become "an art museum fit for the 21st Century", its director has said.

The gallery, which opened in 1988 on the city's Royal Albert Dock, will close in October for a £29.7m revamp.

It has released images of the planned work, which show a new public "Art Hall" and double-height galleries.

Director Helen Legg said the aim of the work was to bring in new visitors and boost the site's green credentials.

She said Tate Liverpool was "proud to be the UK's most visited modern art gallery outside London but, after 35 years, we want to do more to engage new audiences and to reduce the gallery's impact on the environment".

"Through this once-in-a-generation renewal... we will become an art museum fit for the 21st Century, serving the needs of artists and audiences, now and into the future, while continuing to play our part in the ongoing evolution of the historic waterfront," she added.

The revamp, which is due to be completed in 2025, will see the creation of double-height galleries to allow larger works to be displayed.

It will also reveal features of the 180-year-old warehouse in which the gallery is housed, such as windows which are currently concealed.

A Tate representative said it would "reveal new panoramic views of the River Mersey, re-establishing its connection to its historic waterfront site" and create a new exhibition space at ground floor level to show work "that can been seen from the dockside, increasing the visibility of the gallery's work to visitors".

They said environmental standards and thermal performance would be "significantly improved with new services replacing fossil fuel with renewables and natural ventilation introduced to the building to ensure better energy performance".

They added that alongside the revamp, "key themes from the... scheme which formed the gallery in the 1980s will be retained, including a reimagining of the façade and the twin cylindrical gallery doors".

Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said the regeneration would "breathe new life into the gallery, open up access to its collection and improve the visitor experience".

Funding for the project has come from the government's Levelling Up and estates maintenance funds, with some money also being provided by Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

During the closure, the gallery will continue to host events and one-off projects in collaboration with other spaces in Liverpool and plans for the programme for 2024 will be announced in the coming weeks.

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