First look as the Harris reveals new-look ground floor rotunda

Preston’s Harris Museum, Art Gallery and Library has revealed the new-look ground floor rotunda.

Working with partners Ralph Appelbaum Associates for the planning and design to reimagine the building, the rotunda will exhibit the return of the cherished Foucault Pendulum, first featured in the 1900s.

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As part of Harris Your Place, a £16m transformational project, all central rotunda spaces will tell stories of the Harris across time through a variety of different lenses.

Councillor Peter Kelly, Cabinet Member for Culture and Leisure Services at Preston City Council, said: ‘It’s fantastic to see the plans for the Harris Your Place Project come to fruition after partnering with the community to create a shared vision for the new spaces.

“The Harris Your Place Project transformations will have a massive impact on boosting footfall in the city of Preston. By attracting a predicted extra 100,000 visitors per year, there will be more business for Preston’s services, restaurants and retail which will help to grow our city’s economy.”

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New spaces have been designed to activate curiosity, creativity and reflection – including a blended offering of library services visible amongst the art and history collection items. Short statements, themes, and titles will be displayed to orientate visitors and introduce the ‘zoning’ of the new spaces.

Phillip Tefft, Director, Ralph Appelbaum Associates, said: “The Harris occupies an astonishing building at the heart of Preston’s community.

“The vision for the reimagined Harris creates a new kind of place and our new designs break down traditional typological distinctions, combining extraordinary and diverse collections in new and unexpected ways, revealing fresh stories, stimulating visitors to think differently, experiment and participate.

“Together with the community and creative partners, we are creating a destination that is a far cry from a traditional museum, library or gallery: a place that is dynamic and continually renewed by visitors, celebrates creativity and puts Preston squarely on the cultural map.”

The Harris Your Place is a project set to restore and reimagine the Harris for 21st-century audiences as a cultural learning space. The aim of this project is to protect the building and the architecture for future generations, increase accessibility and enhance Preston’s cultural offer.

The capital project is more than simply preserving the much-loved building; the Harris wants to ensure that it remains a vibrant heart of the community, a place where people want to spend their time.

The Harris is being reimagined in response to community feedback and will reopen in 2024.

What do you think of the ground floor plans? Let us know in the comments below.