The Serpentine Sackler Gallery, designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, is opening to the public on Saturday 28 September 2013 after extensive building work that cost £14.5 million. Located a few minutes’ walk from the Serpentine Gallery on the north side of the Serpentine Bridge in London’s Hyde Park, the venue will give new life to The Magazine, a former 1805 gunpowder store, by refurbishing the existing building and adding a light and transparent extension.
Featuring 900 square metres of new gallery, restaurant and social spaces, the Serpentine’s second space in Kensington Gardens is named after Dr Mortimer and Dame Theresa Sackler, whose Foundation has made the project possible through the largest single gift received by the Serpentine Gallery in its 43-year history. At a private event to mark the opening of the gallery on 24 September, Michael Bloomberg (who also donated towards the project via his Bloomberg Philanthropies) was announced as its new Chairman.
