Foyer Archives: A Great Sense of Space

FREE

23 Nov 2023 –⁠ 17 Feb 2024

Archive Studio, Level 2, Royal Festival Hall

Art & exhibitions

A man playing a grand piano in an auditorium — Southbank Centre Archive

Explore the design and history of the Royal Festival Hall foyers, and discover the people behind them, in this free Archive Studio exhibition.Close

From its design and construction under architect Leslie Martin in 1951 to the present day, the foyer spaces of the Royal Festival Hall provide a window into the changing histories of London and the arts.

Originally designed to create a ‘great sense of space’ around the auditorium of the Royal Festival Hall, the foyers have since become a home for trade shows, exhibitions and undiscovered artists early in their careers.

Opened up to the public through the radical open foyer policy of 1983, these areas now serve as key spaces for all, on London’s South Bank.

This free display highlight’s unknown stories of the foyers with never-before-seen archive materials.