On January 14th, 2013, the 491 Gallery closed its doors for the final time.
It is now in the possession of its new owners, who intend to demolish it and build a generic block of flats. Its sister building, Vertigo, will remain. The contents of the community garden are currently subject to a preservation order, and are being transferred to a new community garden on the other side of the railway bridge.
Our home may be gone, but the family we created will live forever. Thank you everyone for twelve incredible years. You made it what it was.
In October 2001, a vacant and abused building in east London was occupied by a group of artists. They transformed it beyond recognition: an eyesore became a vibrant, thriving space for art, music and theatre. They landscaped the weed-strewn wasteland of motorway-construction debris behind it into a wildlife-rich community nature garden, home to hundreds of species of plants and animals.
Ever since, the 491 Gallery has served as a cultural venue for people of the local area, east London and beyond. We regularly host conferences, concerts, art exhibitions, film screenings, concerts and dramatic performances, and offer workshops in everything from life drawing to comedy, sculpting, yoga, technology, and photography; and have the area’s only music rehearsal studio for bands.
Source – http://491gallery.org/
