Today, it feels impossible to imagine the Gallery without it. It sits confidently alongside the Queen Anne townhouse, creating the unique blend of historic and modern that has become synonymous with Pallant House Gallery. Over the past two decades, the modern wing has hosted landmark exhibitions, provided a home for some of the most significant works of Modern British art in public ownership, and enabled the Gallery’s Learning and Community programmes to flourish. It also allowed us to make the townhouse accessible and to reimagine it as a space for showing adventurous contemporary art installations. 

The story begins in the 1990s, when architects Prof Sir Colin St John Wilson and MJ Long offered to donate to the Gallery their internationally significant collection of British Pop and figurative art. Built through decades of friendships with artists including Richard Hamilton, Eduardo Paolozzi, Peter Blake, Patrick Caulfield and R.B. Kitaj, the collection had been on loan to numerous museums including Tate, the Paul Mellon Centre at Yale University, the Scottish National Gallery, and the Fitzwilliam Museum, but they were keen to find a single, permanent home.  

To share the collection with the public in one place, a new kind of space was needed. 

“In the 1980s and 1990s, Pallant House Gallery had become known for having some important artworks – for example in the Hussey and Kearley Bequests – but with the Wilson Collection came the exciting opportunity to present a much more expansive story about Modern British art. With iconic works of British Pop art, here was a collection that was both personal and internationally significant – it was a huge thing for Chichester that it had found its home here. But it also ushered in a growth in ambition for the exhibitions, publications and programmes – which now attract visitors from across Britain and abroad.” – Simon Martin, Director of Pallant House Gallery 

After years of planning, fundraising and consultation, work began in 2003 on perhaps the first ever contemporary extension to a Grade 1 listed building in a historic conservation area. It is also the first museum in Britain to have an environmentally sustainable ground source heat pump and so was far ahead of its times. 

Designed by Long & Kentish in association with Colin St John Wilson, the New Wing was conceived as more than an extension. It was designed to enable the display of the Wilson Collection, making it a rare example of architects creating a public gallery to house their own works of art. 

Every detail was carefully considered, from the quality of light, proportions of the rooms, and gallery seating. The result is a space that, for many, feels both contemporary and timeless. Rather than competing with the historic house, the New Wing complements it, creating a dialogue between architecture across three centuries. 

Following on from the British Library, the project would also become the final completed architectural work in the distinguished career of Prof Sir Colin St John Wilson. 

“After the demolition of the warren of council offices, it was very exciting to see the archaeological dig, and then the geothermal piles being laid, and gradually the structure emerging as we might recognise it today. As Assistant Curator I worked with Sandy Wilson on the design and logistics of the Print Room – which has shaped the way that we store and present works on paper. The courtyard garden designed by Christopher Bradley Hole was transformed from cabins with site-offices to the elegant space we recognise today.” – Simon Martin, Director of Pallant House Gallery 

When the New Wing opened in July 2006, it changed what Pallant House Gallery could be. 

The Wilson Collection finally had a permanent home. New galleries created opportunities for ambitious exhibitions and displays. Learning and engagement programmes expanded. Most importantly, more people were able to discover and enjoy the art in the Gallery’s care. 

The impact was immediate. In 2007, the building received a Royal Institute of British Architects Award, recognising the sensitive way contemporary architecture had been woven into its historic surroundings. That year Pallant House Gallery was crowned ‘Museum of the Year’ with the Gulbenkian Award (now the Art Fund Museum of the Year). 

But perhaps the New Wing’s greatest achievement cannot be measured in awards. Over the past twenty years, it has helped shape Pallant House Gallery into the organisation we know today: a place where historic and contemporary art sit side by side, where new perspectives are encouraged, and where generations of visitors have found inspiration, enjoyment and connection through art. 

The influence of the Wilson Collection continues to be felt throughout the Gallery. In 2021, 175 artworks from the estate of MJ Long were acquired through the Arts Council Acceptance in Lieu scheme, which was awarded ‘Acquisition of the Year’ by Apollo Magazine, from a shortlist that included the Rijksmuseum, The Louvre, and the Château de Versailles. 

Looking back through our archive photographs, it is striking to see how much has changed. Yet the ambition at the heart of the project remains the same: to create an exceptional place for people to encounter and enjoy art. 

“At its heart, the New Wing exemplifies the belief of Walter Hussey, the Dean of Chichester Cathedral that so long as the quality is good, historic and modern can sit side by side. The New Wing enabled us to aspire to high quality in all we do, whether that is the architecture, the collections, the exhibitions, our public programmes, the Bookshop or the Pallant Café. Often now the Gallery is seen as one of the leading art museums in the UK. Back in 2006 we never imagined that we would attract so many offers of artworks and collections in the subsequent 20 years, but that is a reflection of how so many people love the Gallery, its spaces and what we do with them, and the care and consideration that goes into the presentation of artworks.  It is truly an inspirational place to work and that’s not just about architecture, but about the culture that has developed here. There is always a warm welcome from our staff and volunteers.” – Simon Martin, Director of Pallant House Gallery 

As we celebrate this anniversary, we reflect on the many people who brought the project to life: the architects, funders, supporters, trustees, staff and donors whose belief in the Gallery’s future made it possible. 

Twenty years on, the New Wing remains a place of discovery, creativity and inspiration, continuing to welcome new audiences while providing an enduring home for one of Britain’s most important collections of modern art. 

Here’s to the next twenty years.