Mather serves up tennis gallery

Wilmslow consultancy Mather & Co has been appointed by the All England Club to design and build an art gallery and audio-visual theatre for the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum at Centre Court.

The project is part of a two year plan to redesign the entire museum. Mather has been charged with creating a master plan that takes in a new entrance, an extension to the museum and the design and theming of a retail area.

“It is all part of improving the centre court experience,” says Mather & Co managing director Chris Mather.

Mather won the project following a four-way credentials pitch against Land, Event and Hodges & Associates. The new gallery contract is worth a percentage of the £200 000 design-and-build budget, which WLTM commercial manager Ashley Jones declines to reveal. A budget for the total redevelopment has yet to be set.

The gallery and AV theatre will open on 19 May. It is designed to convert readily into a corporate hospitality area for 80 people, which is a first for the museum.

The project is the facility’s first facelift in about 25 years. It claims to attract 50 000 visitors a year.