Details Written by Dulwich Reporter Dulwich Reporter Published: 14 June 2019 14 June 2019 Hits: 1373 1373

The Colour Palace stands stoutly raised up on pillars in all its day-glow glory frankly determined to cheer up visitors regardless of whether the sun is shining or the clouds are spraying us with wintry venom.

The erection of the Colour Palace is to celebrate the winning entry of the open design competition organised by the Dulwich Picture Gallery and the London Festival of Architecture.

African Influence

The Colour Palace was designed by Pricegore, a local Peckham based architecture firm, which collaborated with Nigerian born but London based designer, Yinka Illori. Yinka drew inspiration from marketplaces in Lagos, Nigeria where he experienced a diverse and vibrant array of shapes, colours and styles that engulf the senses from every direction. That feeling is transfered to the Dulwich installation where the visitor is immediately drawn into its vibrant ambience and suggestive presence.

Dingle Price and Alex Gore from Pricegore Architects collaborated with Yinka and the gallery to present this winning design.

Combining culture and architectural time

Today’s multicultural world, reflected in contemporary London draws on this element of diversity. The Colour Palace stands in juxtaposition to the grand architectural design of Sir John Soane’s Dulwich gallery (itself a 1st of its kind at the time of creation) and offers a combined view of where the garden and the gallery share the space together. The two buildings invite you to explore the relationship between culture, time and space, naturally.

Interactive for the Public



For the second year running the gallery is presenting a Dulwich Pavilion display over the course summer as something more to enjoy for the public. The Colour Palace stands outside of the gallery and invites you to enjoy the space and delve into the structure itself (also by walking through the structure and viewing the garden from a different angles and from a higher point of view) as well as enjoying various events in the Colour Palace presented during the summer.

Stay tuned for events

Events will include live performances, yoga classes, dining opportunities, and even an opportunity to listen to recordings of a podcasts.

Why should you visit?

For the culturally minded, there is an obvious connection, and even dialogue, between art and architecture. This installation gives the visitor the opportunity to contemplate our heritage while at the same time our diversity as a city, a nation and, on the wider scale, a species. Even the worlds troubles are getting you down, The Colour Palace will cheer you up, even on a rainy day.

The Colour Palace will be on display in the garden of the Dulwich Picture Gallery from 12th of June until 22nd of September 2019. Admission is free and the gardens are open from Tuesday - Sunday 10am - 5pm (Closed Monday’s).