The new centre, Studio 144, is now open in Guildhall Square in Southampton and is home to a gallery and a theatre company.
Gallery spaces will sit alongside two new theatres, rehearsal and workshop spaces, film production areas, and education facilities, to create a ‘cultural and creative hub that will be the catalyst for a new kind of social space in the city’.
What’s inside Studio 144?
The purpose-built city centre arts complex will provide a visitor attraction at the heart of Southampton’s cultural quarter of museums, galleries, theatres and music venues, situated around Guildhall Square.
Studio 144 will house the John Hansard Gallery, a public gallery of contemporary art which is part of the University of Southampton. It will also be home to Southampton’s leading producing theatre company, Nuffield Southampton Theatres (NST), alongside City Eye, Southampton’s supporter of film culture.
The complex is part of a wider development of the Square, which also features residential properties and a variety of restaurants and cafes.
Side-by-side in the new arts complex, John Hansard Gallery, NST and City Eye will present ‘world-class art exhibitions, inspirational performances, outstanding resources for film-makers and creative events for all ages’, each venue contributing to extending the range and quality of arts and culture in the city.
Studio 144 is led by Southampton City Council and supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, in partnership with Grosvenor Developments Limited and the University of Southampton. Glenn Howells Architects has led the design of the art gallery spaces.
A programme of exhibitions and theatre shows will be confirmed in the coming months.
For more information visit www.southampton.ac.uk.
(Photo credit: Thierry Bal 2017).
