Modern Art Oxford is housed in the former City Brewery building, designed in 1878 by Harry Drinkwater.The project focused on improving visual appearance, lighting and acoustics, while enhancing navigation and circulation, to create a more welcoming and inclusive venue.A key space is the new ground-floor gallery which has been designed with flexible display structures to host exhibitions that involve local artists and communities, part of the gallerys drive to strengthen creative engagement of visitors.AdvertisementWith much of the buildings historic fabric remaining intact, DKA looked to reveal and celebrate features such as the cast-iron columns and original brickwork, which recall the buildings industrial past while giving a rhythm and character to the gallery spaces.A new shop and caf designed by British artist Emma Hart is designed to both enhance visitors enjoyment of the gallery and support its economic sustainability. The buildings services and energy performance have also been upgraded.Architects viewWe have focused on the sequence of spaces from the street to the gallery choreographing visitors movements from the busy public realm outside, and refreshing their senses so that they can immerse themselves more fully in the displays. Our new ground-floor gallery complements Modern Art Oxfords other spaces engaging local audiences and drawing in people who might not have historically felt so welcome.It has been a real pleasure to work with director Paul Hobson and his team on the redevelopment programme. Modern Art Oxford is now a much more flexible and welcoming setting for contemporary art programming, and we have enjoyed working with them to harness their building to attract and build new audiences.David Kohn, founding director, David Kohn Architects Source:David Kohn ArchitectsProject dataStart on site June 2024Completion October 2024Gross internal floor area 600m2Project cost 2,000,000Project cost per m2 3,333Architect David Kohn ArchitectsClient Modern Art OxfordStructural engineer Mike Wilford AssociatesM&E consultant MethodQuantity surveyor RidgeProject manager RidgePrincipal designer David Kohn ArchitectsApproved building inspector SocotecMain contractor KingerleeArtist Emma HartGraphic designer Kellenberger WhiteJoinery Weber IndustriesCaf fabrication The White Wall CompanyLighting design TM LightingCAD software used VectorworksCO2 emissions Not available