Works underway at Turner Contemporary as part of a ten year maintenance programme are expected to cost £1.6million.
The project to remove, renovate and reinstall the glass cladding at the building started in September with a predicted 42 week schedule.
The work, being carried out by Thanet firm WW Martin, is being funded by Kent County Council which owns the freehold to the site.
Despite extensive scaffolding the gallery is open to the public and will remain so while the maintenance is carried out.
There is a lifecycle fund for the gallery and the county council sets aside an annual contribution for upcoming maintenance. The works currently required needed an additional contribution from the council’s maintenance budgets to ensure the site meets all new building regulations.
A Kent County Council spokesman said: “The works to Turner Contemporary include the removal, renovation and reinstallation of the current glass cladding system – including some broken panels – as part of a 10-year maintenance plan.
“The budgeted cost is £1.6million.
“The temporary removal of the cladding provides the opportunity to ensure the structure meets all new building regulations.
“The project, commissioned by KCC and carried out by Ramsgate company WW Martin as the main contractor, is scheduled to take up to 42 weeks, subject to favourable weather conditions, and the gallery will remain open – during its normal hours – throughout.
“KCC owns the freehold of the site and it has a lease in place with the trust. The council has contractual responsibilities to undertake certain repairs at the gallery and ensure that the building’s condition is appropriately maintained.
“The gallery is an asset which is a key plank of the regeneration agenda for one of the county’s most challenged districts.”
Income and outgoings
In Turner Contemporary accounts for the year ending March 2022 it shows a total income of £2,579,203 (2021: £2,833,863). Expenditure amounted to £3,098,367 (2021: £2,383,881 ), meaning a net deficit for the year of £519,164 (surplus for 2021: £449,981).
The deficit for the financial year is mainly due to the receipt in 2021 of restricted funds that were spent this year.
Turner Contemporary ended the financial year with consolidated unrestricted funds of £837,462 (2021: £717, 199) an increase of £120,263. The gallery board aims to build a surplus in order to develop an operating reserve.
Core funding for 2022 from KCC was £510,000 and £681,791 from Arts Council England. Other grants for the year included £18,000 from Thanet council in relation to a Restart Grant which was paid by Civica.
Sonia Boyce exhibition
The gallery is due to host Sonia Boyce’s exhibition Feeling Her Way, from February 2023.
Commissioned by the British Council for the British Pavilion, the installation combines video, collage, music and sculpture to present a body of work that centres around the vocal experimentation of five Black female musicians.
Featuring Jacqui Dankworth, Poppy Ajudha, Sofia Jernberg, Tanita Tikaram, and composer Errollyn Wallen, these intergenerational musicians were brought together by Boyce at Abbey Road Studios in London and Atlantis Studios in Stockholm to improvise with their voices. Colour-tinted video works take centre stage among tessellating wallpapers, created by Boyce, and golden 3-D geometric structures..
Sonia Boyce said: “I am so excited Turner Contemporary will be hosting Feeling Her Way for the first leg of the exhibition’s tour. To see the evolution of this project back in the UK feels incredibly significant to me, especially in Margate, which is coming into its own as a dynamic cultural hotspot.”
With the support of the Art Fund, the exhibition will run from 4 February – 8 May 2023.
