The gallery, which helped mould the careers of several leading UK and international graphic designers is being forced from its Charlotte Street base after the property was sold by its landlord for redevelopment.
As a result the gallery is organising a pop-up exhibition in February next year to celebrate its history, which it hopes will act as a springboard for its grander ambition of creating a national centre for graphic design, to launch the careers of the next generation of graphic designers.
“It was something of a shock to find we were being turfed out of our premises, but out of this crisis we now have a one-off chance to build on Kemistry Gallery’s fantastic and unique successes over the past decade, and give it truly sustainable future as the UK’s leading centre for discovering the very best of international graphic design,” said Kemistry creative director Graham McCallum.
The gallery has already secured £15,000 of Arts Council funding for the pop-up show and to undertake a feasibility study of creating a national centre for graphic design. However, Kemistry needs another £15,000 to get the project off the ground.
As a result, last week it launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise the additional finance, with almost £5,000 raised in the first few days.
In exchange for pledges, the gallery is offering special edition postcards and posters all the way up to limited edition Malika Favre prints or one-day print workshops with Anthony Burrill.
“We’ve always really believed passionately in the gallery, and will move heaven and earth to keep it open. But the costs involved in relocating in this current climate are simply beyond us,” said Kemistry head of production Ricky Churchill.
“In any case, for some time we’ve felt the ambition of the gallery, its exhibition programme and its potential for educational collaborations and engagement with the design community, has outstripped the space we currently use. The time has come for Kemistry Gallery to stand on its own two feet and truly become the centre for discovering the very best work in graphic design.”
For more information, visit the Kemistry page on Kickstarter.com.
