The New Gordon Gallery in South Tel Aviv, Israel by Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture

Article source: Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture

Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture unveils the new and third physical space for Gordon Gallery, one of Israel’s leading art institutions, located in Tel Aviv. The 165-square meter contemporary art space was transformed from the ruins of a warehouse on the fringe of the city and extends the burgeoning south Tel Aviv art scene into the industrial neighborhood bordering Jaffa.

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

• Architects: Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture
• Project: The New Gordon Gallery
• Location: South Tel Aviv, Israel
• Photography: Elad Sarig

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture was tasked with a peculiar municipality development affecting their strategic plan for the new Gordon Gallery. The industrial neighborhood was re-zoned during planning as a high density, mixed-use area, opening the possibility to future residential tower construction.  While the structure can be viewed as temporary in zoning terms, the design could not afford to be taken lightly. The gallery was grounded and constructed in the spirit of permanence with a keen attention to detail. As the firm has learned over the years, few things are quite as permanent in Tel Aviv as temporary structures.

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

The firm maintained a great respect to the industrial landscape of the South Tel Aviv neighborhood, the gallery’s requirements and the surrounding carpentry workshops and zipper factory on Hapelech Street. The dialogue between the internal and external areas of The New Gordon Gallery color the perception of the space. Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture was adamant in avoiding the Platonian illusion of a neutral “white box” atmosphere common to contemporary galleries.

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Asaf Gottesman comments: “The designing of any art gallery is as much about its boundaries as the volumes that defy definition. As architects who are commissioned to design art spaces, we have learnt that works of art are perceived in their fuller richness in spaces that have character, where spaces are akin to the silence or counterpoint that exist between the musical notes.”

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

The firm’s principal objective in the design of the new Gordon Gallery was to set the stage for the unexpected; to enhance the senses not through the introduction of noise but through the silence of light and shade; to enable a measured discourse between objects and the spaces that they occupy.

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

The new space in south Tel Aviv is Gordon Galleries’ third locale and the latest iteration allowing the institution to further extend its reach and influence in the contemporary art sphere in addition to its contemporary GordonGallery 2 and the fine arts focus of of the original Gordon Gallery and auction house on Ben Yehuda Street. The large converted warehouse will showcase established and up-and-coming names from the local and International art world to a wider and diverse crowd.

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Known for its collection of fine Israeli art, one of the largest collections of its kind, Gordon Gallery was originally established in 1966 on its namesake Gordon Street in Tel Aviv hosting hundreds of exhibitions over the years and publishing dozens of iconic catalogues and art books. The Gordon Galleries continue to represent Israel’s leading artists and important estates. In 1977, they expanded to include the first Israeli auction house becoming one of the cornerstones of the Israeli art market and built some of the most prestigious collections of Israeli art both in Israel and abroad. The original gallery moved to its new location on Ben Yehuda Street in 1980. In 2012, they added GordonGallery 2, a sister gallery devoted to Contemporary Israeli and international art and in 2016, their third space, The New Gordon Gallery an additional Contemporary focused gallery in South Tel Aviv.

Image Courtesy © Elad Sarig

Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture

Founded more then a decade ago by renowned architects Asaf Gottesman and Ami Szmelcman, Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture is an award-winning, forward-thinking and innovative architecture firm based in Israel and France with an expanding fleet of projects around the world. With a profound knowledge in urban planning, residential design, academic buildings and “architect-to-developer processes,” Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture conceptualizes and develops buzz-worthy and accolade-demanding projects all over the world that necessitate media attention, from luxury hotels and residencies to major urban and academy projects.

Tags: Israel, South Tel Aviv

Categories: Art Gallery, Gallery

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