Chisenhale Gallery occupies the ground floor of Chisenhale Works, a former veneer factory on Chisenhale Road in Bow, built in 1942–43 and run by CHN Veneers until 1972. In 1980 a group of artists evicted from studios by the Thames leased the building from Tower Hamlets Council and turned its upper floors into studios.
The gallery opened in December 1986 and became a separate charity in the early 1990s. It still shares the building with Chisenhale Studios and Chisenhale Dance Space. “Chisenhale Gallery was founded by artists,” it states, and it commissions and produces contemporary art, publishes books and runs social projects.
Commissions
Mona Hatoum took part in the 1988 group exhibition Essential Black Art. Rachel Whiteread made an exhibition at Chisenhale in 1990 and Cornelia Parker in 1991, followed by Gillian Wearing in 1997 and Lynette Yiadom-Boakye in 2012.
In early 2026 the gallery showed A Bug’s Life by the Berlin-based artist Arash Nassiri, co-commissioned with Fluentum in Berlin and Fondation Pernod Ricard in Paris.
Kibuuka Omumbaale by Wakaliga Uganda is on view until 6 December 2026. The 2027 programme brings exhibitions by Wisrah C. V. da R. Celestino, Diane Severin Nguyen and Coumba Samba. Entry is free, Wednesday to Sunday, 12 to 6pm.
Location: Bow, London, United Kingdom
Address: 64 Chisenhale Road, London E3 5QZ, United Kingdom
Website: chisenhale.org.uk
Instagram: @chisenhalegallery