A new pavilion at London's Dulwich Picture Gallery charms mini art lovers

If the Dulwich Picture Gallery‘s Grade II-listed manor is one of South London’s greatest assets, the vast, underutilised grounds have been one of its greatest liabilities. Andy Groarke, partner in London architecture practice Carmody Groarke, described them as ‘undiscoverable’, in fact — which is why the unveiling this week of a new children’s pavilion, sculpture meadow and expanded cottage-café is so exciting for the 150 schools and thousands of families that visit this three-acre heritage park.

Groarke and partner Kevin Carmody saw this new all-weather play space as a ‘hinge’ between the Grade II-listed gallery, designed more than 200 years ago by John Soane, and the wooded gardens beyond. Deceptively simple, faced in clean, gently stepped Douglas fir, its cruciform footprint allows for functional ‘boxes’ in each corner and smaller nooks — Groarke calls them ‘episodes’ — for children to discover. A timber-frame roof, made from the same locally sourced timber, opens into a central toplight — a response to the ‘roof lantern’ in the gallery proper. To make the pavilion feel part of the whole, the architects designed large glazed oculi slung with upholstered window seats. Deep painted-metal canopies offer shelter and shade far beyond the interior. ‘They extend the generosity of the building,’ says Groarke. ‘Next to… Soane’s gallery, this is a bit of a counterpoint.’

Recently, a team of toddler-aged test subjects, also locally sourced, appeared to revel in the miniature Venetian bridge, peek-a-boo slide and array of highly tactile cushions, inspired by the Rembrandts and Canalettos in the Picture Gallery’s collection. Their parents enjoyed coffee at the newly expanded Canteen café, serving as a lunchroom for school groups and part-time event space.

Just behind the building, a grassy amphitheatre by landscape architect Kim Wilkie is taking shape, planted with sculpture by Amy Stephens, Peter Randall-Page and others. Under the lawns and out of site is a new ground source heat pump that will service the entire property. This was an important piece of the wider brief: to create an immersive experience of art and architecture in the landscape while making the site greener overall. ‘It was an incredibly humbling experience,’ says Groarke, ‘to be given that brief as an architect.’