The Whitechapel Fine Art Loan Exhibitions were established by Reverend Samuel Barnett (1844-1913) and Henrietta Rowland Barnett (1851-1936) to bring the best art to the people living in one of the poorest districts in London. From 1881 to 1898, St. Jude's School on Commercial Street, E. 1, became a temporary art gallery during the Easter holiday. The success of the Exhibitions led to the foundation of the Whitechapel Gallery in 1901.

Imagine a school located behind a church in East London; you walk along a dark alley, enter the school, and discover an art exhibition. The rooms are thronged with people, looking, reading catalogs, and listening to guides while volunteers watch over the paintings and the people. This is not just any exhibition but the Whitechapel Fine Art Loan Exhibition: an extraordinary example of the power of art to effect social change.

Now, for the very first time, you can visit the Whitechapel Fine Art Loan Exhibition and discover a forgotten episode in the radical history of Whitechapel Gallery.

 

1884 At the Whitechapel Exhibition reconstructs and reimagines the fourth year of the Whitechapel Fine Art Loan Exhibitions. From 9th to 20th April 1884, the exhibition was open daily, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., and 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays; admission was free, and a catalog cost one penny. The results were remarkable: 34,291 people came over 12 days to view 235 paintings.

1884 At the Whitechapel Exhibition is curated by Professor Lucy Hartley, University of Michigan.

The website is designed by Clara Elpi, LSA Digital Scholarship Studio, University of Michigan. The 3D model is produced by Ben Mazza and Joe Grabowski at Sagenverse.

In partnership with
Whitechapel Gallery
Andrey Lazarev and Aiden Chan, past and present archivists

Supported by
University of Michigan
LSA Digital Scholarship Studio, LSA Research Office, and Office of the Vice-President for Research
With additional support from the Department of English Language & Literature, University of Michigan

Special thanks to the galleries, museums, and institutions who allowed the use of digital images from their collections without a license fee.