David Roberts the Scottish collector is to close his Camden Town project space in London. Opened in 2012 in a disused 19th-century furniture factory the gallery was a highly regarded independent art space. The gallery found support from Arts Council England and has supported a number of group and solo performances and exhibitions. He will now set his energy on opening a publicly-accessible 20-acre sculpture park in Somerset, west England.
“We hope to attract a wider audience in Somerset” – David Roberts
The final show at the space will be (X) A Fantasy, featuring works by Theaster Gates and Danh Vo, is due to open next month (8 September-7 October). Roberts will continue with a London-based performance programme, presenting the annual Evening of Performances—held during the week of the Frieze art fair—at different venues in the capital. Draf is set to take over the Koko music venue in Camden on 3 October, with a new commission by Laure Prouvost and DJ Nkisi.
“The property in Somerset will be non-commercial. We will show things from the collection there, and start new projects,” Roberts says. “We hope to attract a wider audience in Somerset; we think we’ll have more visitors there than in London. We don’t get huge numbers of people through the door in Camden”, he told the Art Newspaper
DRAF (David Roberts Art Foundation) is an independent, non-profit organisation for contemporary art. Since it was founded in 2007, DRAF has welcomed over 100,000 visitors to international programmes including exhibitions, commissions, performances, and discussions. To date, DRAF has partnered with over 100 museums, institutions, and not for profit organisations and collaborated with over 1,000 artists.DRAF moved from its original premises in Fitzrovia in 2012 to its current space at Symes Mews, 37 Camden High Street, Mornington Crescent, London NW1 7JE. In 2015, DRAF Studio opened as a dedicated space for live projects.
DRAF is responsible for the David Roberts Collection. Started in the mid-1990s, the Collection currently comprises over 2,000 works. It focuses on contemporary works but also includes some modern works. It is not focused on a specific medium, generation or geographical area.
The Collection is an evolving archive of forms and concepts. Works from the Collection are regularly exhibited at DRAF or internationally within exhibitions at other institutions.
David Roberts Collection is an evolving archive of forms and concepts. Works from the Collection are regularly exhibited at DRAF or internationally within exhibitions at other institutions.