York Historic Environment Record

YORK SE6052SW EXHIBITION SQUARE 1112-1/27/309 (North West side) 01/07/68 City Art Gallery (Formerly Listed as: EXHIBITION SQUARE The City Art Gallery (original front portion only)) GV II Art gallery. 1878-79; restored and extended 1952. By Edward Taylor. For the Yorkshire Fine Arts and Industrial Institution. Front of sandstone ashlar: elsewhere yellow-grey brick in Monk bond variant: shallow hipped and pitched slate roofs, partly glazed, with brick stacks. EXTERIOR: 2-storey 5-bay front between 2-storey pavilion blocks: projecting 1-storey 5-bay loggia. Loggia has keyed round arches with Composite columns, portrait medallions in spandrels and garlanded urn terminals: within, three pairs of glazed and panelled doors with semicircular fanlights. On first floor, bays are arcaded between pilasters, the three middle bays pedimented and breaking forward between coupled pilasters. Keyed round arch to each bay encloses blank sunk panel in moulded surround. End blocks articulated as single bays between half bays: by paired Composite columns beneath modillion cornice and balustraded parapet on ground floor; by pilasters carrying segmental pediments on first floor. On ground floor, both blocks have glazed and panelled double doors in round-arched architraves with garlanded keyblocks; half bays have carved panels with stylised flowers and foliage in relief. On first floor, centre bay round arches enclose glazed tile panels depicting the Death of Leonardo to left, Michelangelo showing his statue of Moses to right. Flanking half bays contain shallow round-arched niches beneath keyed oculi. Moulded and modillioned cornice extends overall, beneath parapet balustraded on each side of pediment and rising to voluted attics over pavilion bays. Left and right returns to front block: 2 storeys, 3 bays. Three round-arched cross windows with stone sills on ground floor, one on right return altered to glazed double doors. First floor subdivided into 5 unequal bays by pilasters raised on a podium pierced by three ornate cast-iron ventilator grilles, and with moulded imposts extended to form band across flanking bays. Centre bay has blank sunk panel in keyed round arch, flanking half bays keyed oculi, outer bays round-arched niches as on main front. Cornice returned from main front beneath balustraded parapet rising to attic over centre bay. On left side, 1-storey 9-bay range extends at rear of front block, with blind round-arched window with stone sill to each bay. On right side, rear range is 2-storeyed, ground floor largely obscured by later buildings. First floor openings are blind. Two external stacks project, one with top stage arcaded with single round arch to each face, the other with tapered louvred top with moulded cap. INTERIOR: not inspected. (Bartholomew City Guides: Hutchinson J and Palliser DM: York: Edinburgh: 1980-: 163-4; An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in the City of York: RCHME: Outside the City Walls East of the Ouse: HMSO London: 1975-: 45). Listing NGR: SE6006052253