The new Switch House building designed by architects Herzog & de Meuron will open to the public on the 17th June.
One of the world’s most recognised and beloved galleries of contemporary and modern art has now even more space to display international artwork with the new Switch House building.
Tate Modern has completely re-hung their free collection displays featuring 800 works by 300 artists from countries such as Chile, India, Russia,Sudan and Thailand. Most of the work on display has been acquired since Tate Modern originally opened in 2000. The works are displayed across the existing Boiler House and new Switch House building.
The new Switch House building has increased the size of Tate Modern by sixty percent, offering new experiences for visitors. These experiences include the subterranean concrete Tanks, the first permanent museum spaces dedicated to live art and new spaces for Learning. The Turbine Hall now becomes the central space of the museum.
Masterpieces by Pablo Picasso, Mark Rothko and Henri Matisse are hung alongside new acquisitions from around the world. Some of these acquisitions include: 1930s photography by Lionel Wendt from Sri Lanka, 1950s collage by Benode Behari Mukherjee from India, and 1960s sculpture by Saloua Raouda Choucair from Lebanon.
To celebrate the opening, Tate Modern will stay open to 10pm each evening this weekend. The centrepiece will be a specially-commissioned choral work by artist Peter Liversidge, performed at 17:00 on Saturday 18 June by over 500 singers from community choirs across London. Free screenings of film and video works from Tate’s collection will be held throughout each day in the newly refurbished Starr Cinema, while special events for young people and families will take place across the weekend.
Before opening on the 17th June to the public for the first time, 3,000 school children from across the UK, from Orkney to St Ives, will be the first members of the public to see the new Tate Modern at a special preview on Thursday 16 June.
The displays have been curated by the curatorial team at Tate Modern led by Frances Morris, Director; Matthew Gale, Head of Displays; Ann Coxon, Curator, Displays & International Art; Mark Godfrey, Senior Curator, International Art; Catherine Wood, Senior Curator, International Art (Performance); Andrea Lissoni, Senior Curator, International Art (Film); and Simon Baker, Senior Curator, International Art (Photography).