Richmond's free public art space Orleans House Gallery is reopening next week.

The riverside gallery has been closed for four months since March 19.

It includes the Grade I-listed Octagon Room and is home to the Richmond Borough Art Collection.

Two galleries offer a varied programme of historic and modern exhibitions, and the Study Gallery explores the history of the area.

Highlights at the gallery this summer

• Beyond the Frame will reopen in the Main Gallery, showing new work from eighteen artists. Taking inspiration from the Richmond Borough Art Collection, they invite you to peer beyond the frame, peek beneath the canvas and step behind the brush.
• Robin MacFarlan's Views from a Playroom will reopen in the Stables Gallery. In scenes that are both natural and ludicrous, toys that were once our playthings now play with us, as they quietly mock the behaviour of the adults we have since become.

Upcoming this autumn

• Artist collective Alice in Hackneyland will take over the Main Gallery with Trompe-l'il and a fluorescent banquet to celebrate the 300th birthday of the Octagon Room.
• Upcoming this autumn… Art Unlocked is a response to the unfurling of Covid-19 by the artists, designers and makers of Richmond Art House Open Studios.

Orleans House Gallery, near the playground in Marble Hill Park, is a free public art gallery, managed by Richmond Council.

It will reopen on Tuesday, July 21, following a long closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.

New Covid-19 safety measures

In accordance with government guidance, measures are being put in place to ensure visitors are able to enjoy visits to the gallery once again.

While there will be restrictions on the number of visitors allowed entry at any one time, a one-way system will also be in operation along with directional and distancing signs and sneeze screens located at customer service points.

Cllr John Coombs is lead member for arts and culture on Richmond Council.

He said: "Although we're eager to return and can't wait to welcome people back to Orleans House Gallery, before we reopen we need to put safeguards in place. The health and safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers remain our priority.

"We're working on this process now and following government guidelines to ensure our visitors, staff and volunteers can be safe when we re-open.

"We have an exciting programme of exhibitions planned for the next few months and I am sure that everyone who visits the gallery will enjoy the experience."

Opening hours are: Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm.