Endeavour Galleries

Maritime exploration on display.

The new Endeavor Galleries at the National Maritime Museum are spaces for examining the idea of exploration in its widest sense. The area is split into several themes: Pacific Encounters; Polar Worlds; Tudor and Stuart Seafarers; and Sea Things. The new area will increase the exhibition space by 40 percent, allowing an additional 1,000 artefacts to be displayed.

Heritage constraints.

A major challenge was how to integrate the new services design around the constraints of the existing Grade I listed building. We needed to ensure minimum impact on the physical structure. This involved working in collaboration with the design and client estate management team to investigate existing services routes, system capacities, and potential spaces for the new installation. This approach led to a solution combining the new with extending the old: for example, routing ductwork runs through historic timber roof trusses to serve the gallery spaces below.

Engaging exhibition.

The project gave us a unique opportunity to really get involved in the process and see the designs for the different galleries develop – each with its own unique theme. We worked closely with the exhibition designer and architect to ensure the services design had minimal visual impact, without compromising the environmental conditions key to the protection of objects within the space. The end result? Maximised height and space in the galleries, all while minimising the extent and cost of the new central plant.