The Pump House Gallery

Background

The Pump House Gallery is a restored grade II listed building, built in 1861 to supply water to the lakes and cascads of the then new Battersea Park. Derelict for many years, it was neglected by all but inquisitive children and sweethearts on sevret trysts. In 1986 Wandsworth Borough Council took over responsibility for the Park from the London County Council.

Following this, English Heritage and Wandsworth Council worked together on the £400,000 restoration project and the building reopened in 1992 as a shop, Park Information Centre and Art Gallery.

The Gallery

From 1992 until the end of 1998 the gallery, consisting of the two upper floors, was co-ordinated by Wandsworth Arts Office as an exhibition hire space. Artists paid to show their work and exhibitions changed every two weeks. This led to the commonly held view that the Pump House Gallery "shows work by local artists".

In 1999, with new management and responsibility transferred to the Parks Department, the Pump House has developed into a contemporary visual arts exhibition space with a refocused aim to entertain, educate and interpret for a wider audience. Exhibitions fill all four floors and are more broadly publicised.

Venue for Hire

The Pump House was developed as a venue for private hire events and in 1995 gained a licence to hold civil weddings. These activities have been very successful with a range of events being held in the gallery from parties, weddings and receptions to corporate entertaining and product launches. For more information about hiring the Pump House please use the number shown on the Wandsworth Contacts page.

To see the upcoming events scheduled at the Pump House Gallery
look at the Wandsworth Council events pages.