New Wolverhampton cafe set to offer brighter view of art gallery

The Glaze cafe at the gallery on Lichfield Street has opened to coincide with the start of the British Art Show 9 – which is expected to attract 50,000 people to the city during the event that runs until April 10.

The new ground-floor cafe overlooking the St Peter's Church gardens replaces the old upstairs one with Cannock-based firm, Croft Building and Conservation Ltd, carrying out the works.

The £1.5 million phase two works have been funded by Arts Council England grants and existing capital funding from Wolverhampton Council.

Phase one of the gallery improvements included the Sensing Sculpture room on the first floor being transformed into an exhibition space that has enabled the gallery to host larger touring exhibitions such as the Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year.

The new cafe, decorated with pieces from the gallery's Pop Art collection, features a wide drinks menu, including eight types of tea, and a varied food menu which includes an all-day breakfast, soups, sandwiches, samosas, jacket potatoes and a full children's menu.

Councillor Stephen Simkins, Wolverhampton Council deputy leader and cabinet member for city economy, was in attendance at the launch and said the new cafe was part of the work by the council to turn the city into a visitor economy.

He said: "This new cafe is a big part of plans for our city and we want more people to come and see things like British Art Show 9, which will bring in around 50,000 visitors and is good for the economy.

"It's pleasing for me to see the end product here as it used to be very dark and gloomy and now, even in the darkest and cruellest winter we've had in years, it is still filled with natural light and lends itself well to the artists.

"We've made a point to make it inclusive and it can bring more people in because of being on the ground floor and having a price list which is inclusive as well, so more people can come in enjoy the art on display."

The new cafe is also part of an effort by the council to make galleries across the city more accessible, with venues such as Bilston, Wednesfield, Penn and Tettenhall libraries part of the redevelopment plans.

Tom Jenkins, chairman of the Friends of Wolverhampton Arts and Museums, said his first reaction on seeing the new cafe was amazement.

He said: "I just thought 'wow' when I first saw this and I think this art gallery is one of the important in the country, so this is going to be a real plus.

"It means there is now scope for us to expand our regular coffee mornings to more people, providing a welcome opportunity for members to socialise and enjoy the exhibitions and displays.

"The new facilities will also encourage more people to come and spend time in our fantastic city centre art gallery."

The Art Gallery's arts and culture manager, Marguerite Nugent, said she was equally as delighted with the new cafe and spoke about the transformation of the room, which had previously been a darker exhibition room.

She said: "I've worked here for more than 25 years now and this space used to be one of our gallery spaces, so all the windows were clad and had art works on them, so it wasn't opened up to the light outside.

"It means we can showcase our collection as well, because when we were looking at the design and inspiration of the cafe, we started to look at our Pop Art collection and we've put several of them up on the walls in here.

"I think this will benefit not just the gallery, but the whole city as it's a real quality eatery and is somewhere a bit different to go to with a more varied menu than just a panini and a cup of coffee."