Hannah Watson Appointed New Chapel Chair
The Fitzrovia Chapel has appointed Hannah Watson, Director of TJ Boulting gallery and art book publisher Trolley Books, as chair. Hannah has been a trustee of the Fitzrovia Chapel since 2016.
News from the chapel
Opens Days at the Chapel
Our Wednesday open days are a time for visitors to wander in to the chapel and absorb the history and beauty. A chance to step out of the city and into a place of calm and reflection. From February next year (with a break in January), they will also be a time to perhaps discover an object or book or listen to music or audio. While the chapel will remain an oasis of quiet and contemplation – and a building of architectural and historical interest – it will also be a place to surprise, delight and discover.
Telling the Truth about Nina Hamnett
In our autumn exhibition, Nina Hamnett – ‘Everybody was Furious’, we offer a rare glimpse at the life and legacy of former Fitzrovia resident, artist Nina Hamnett. The show displays six rarely exhibited sketches by the ‘Queen of Bohemia’ (kindly loaned from the museum in her home town of Tenby) set under the chapel’s golden ceiling, a stone’s throw from her former homes and her local pub.
Nina Hamnett – a Simple Exhibition Celebrating a Complex Woman of Fitzrovia
The Fitzrovia Chapel presents a rare glimpse into the life and work of writer and artist Nina Hamnett through an intimate exhibition of rarely seen sketches. ‘Nina Hamnett — ‘Everybody was Furious’ explores this often-overlooked Welsh artist who is central to the creative and cultural legacy of Fitzrovia as well as the wider art scene. Influenced by her own writings and Fitzrovian myth, this is a simple exhibition about the work of a complex woman. The exhibition includes a touching portrait of Nina’s niece, Rosemary Booth-Clibborn, aged 10, and a drawing which has never before been displayed in a public...
Artist Jonathan Baldock at the Fitzrovia Chapel for Frieze
Stephen Friedman Gallery will present work by artist Jonathan Baldock at the Fitzrovia Chapel this October. The exhibition, part of Frieze London and Frieze Masters, is called ‘My Biggest Fear Is That Someone Will Crawl Into It’. It is a large, interactive sculpture which visitors can climb into and then listen to recordings by the artist’s mother. The show runs from 2 to 5 October at the chapel and is free to enter. Credits: Jonathan Baldock, ‘My Biggest Fear Is That Someone Will Crawl Into It’, 2017. Mixed media; fabric, wood, bed, light bulb, 2.5 x 2.1 x 1.6m (8...
‘Will it Bring them to their Knees?’ The Fascinating Evolution of the Fitzrovia Chapel
In this article, we reflect on the fascinating life of the Middlesex Hospital’s chapel, moving from its days in the courtyard at the centre of the hospital though to its current iteration as a community arts space and events venue. The urban and social context of such a rare and unique place is key to understanding how best to put it to work for the community it serves – and we share how the history of the building and our experience as a part of the Fitzrovian community is hugely influenced by the creative and social opportunities in the area past and present....
Help Keep our Floor Fabulous
As part of our Help Keep our Floor Fabulous campaign this year, we are asking for help to raise £5,000 to carry out urgent conservation work on our beautiful mosaic floor. Hundreds of people visit the chapel each month for our free open days and audio events, exhibitions, weddings, baby namings, memorials and guided tours. While this is a wonderful thing, unfortunately a whole panel of tiles has become loose as a result of visitor numbers and is in real danger of further damage. To keep the chapel open and accessible for generations to come, we desperately need to bring in specialist...
Visit Debris during Open House London
Debris, a photography and video exhibition shown as part of Open House London by Milan-based artist Paola Musico, focuses on found, lost and discarded objects in otherworldly beachscapes in the UK and Egypt. Imagining a place which gathers all the lost property in the world, the show draws on inspiration from literature, mythology and psychology.
Could You be our Next Team Member?
We are recruiting for new casual team members (casual events hosts and duty managers) to support the chapel across our hires business. The Fitzrovia Chapel is a unique central London venue, a classical and yet unconventional architectural wonder with an innovative and quality cultural life. We provide a secular space within a listed building for civil wedding ceremonies, drinks receptions, live performances, art exhibitions and filming.
The Blue Skies Project
One thousand and seventy-eight photographs of the sky above the last known location of every former Nazi Germany concentration camp will go on display at the Fitzrovia Chapel in May. The Blue Skies Project by Belgian artist, Anton Kusters, will be accompanied by an audio work by Ruben Samama, tracking 13-years in real time from the date of the opening of the first concentration camp in Nazi Germany to the closing of the last. This is the first time that this immersive, multi-media installation has gone on display in the capital and will coincide with Photo London. The Blue...
Out of the Grey and into the Chapel
At first glance, you might not consider that the Fitzrovia Chapel would be the first choice for a wildlife photographer to display his enormous, black and white, fine art prints. However, delve a little deeper by talking to Martin Sean (who has his first exhibition at the chapel in April) and a real synergy emerges. Out of the Grey opens at the chapel on 9 April. The chapel interview Chapel: Where did your relationship with the chapel begin? Martin: I was fortunate to be asked to take pictures of the chapel when it reopened after restoration. I loved the...
Hires and operations manager
We’re looking for a Hires and Operations Manager to be responsible for all venue hire bookings and for generating income to support the upkeep of the building and our programme. The focus is primarily on hiring the chapel for weddings, private events and shoots and on managing those bookings. Importantly, you will also manage building maintenance and operations. You will manage the external hires and events from enquiry through contracts, to delivery, at which point you’ll hand over to the superb duty management crew you’ll have skilfully recruited! Our ideal candidate will be hands-on, efficient, proactive in solving problems,...