South London Gallery, London

South London Gallery 65 Peckham Road, London SE5 8UH

http://www.southlondongallery.org/

The South London Gallery (SLG) has its beginnings in the opening of the South London Working Men’s College in 1886. William Rossiter, supporter of the college, purchased the freehold of Portland House in Peckham Road in 1889 and began work on building a new gallery in the grounds.

The South London Fine Art Gallery opened on 4 May 1891. The gallery is currently managing an extension project with
Stanton Williams Architects and the artist Ori Gersht, due for
completion in 2010.

The SLG has a small yet strong collection of contemporary art. In the 1980s the gallery focused on collecting works by local artists and works relating to South London. Later, the gallery acquired work for its permanent collection in relation to its changing temporary exhibition programme, including the work of Gilbert and George, Anselm Kiefer and Sherrie Levine, as well as Tracey Emin, Gavin Turk and Ann-Sofi Siden.

The collection follows two main themes: artists picturing themselves and artists recording the local area, with works by Sarah Lucas, Keith Coventry, Angus Fairhurst, Christian Boltanski and Keith Tyson. The South London Gallery is best known for its changing programme of contemporary art exhibitions.

Editor's note:
It may come as a surprise that SLG has a permanent collection. Many works can be seen in the building's hallways and stairwells and pieces are often brought out in themed exhibitions. The new development of the building will give more space to make this broad-ranging collection visible.

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