121 Pall Mall

121 Pall Mall was a residence, before art dealer Ernest Gambart opened the French Gallery there, located in St. James’s, City of Westminster, central London. The building was demolished in 1939, and the site now houses a Spanish bank.

Coordinates

Latitude: 51.507401080933
Longitude: -0.131814479828

View on the COVE Master Map

Timeline of Events Associated with 121 Pall Mall

Date Event Manage
29 Apr 1854

Exhibition of French Paintings at Pall Mall

engraving of Pall Mall 121On 29 April 1854, the first Annual Exhibition of French Paintings opened at 121 Pall Mall. Image: G. C. Leighton after R. Sandeman, Pall Mall No. 120 and 121, n.d. Engraving. This image is in the public domain in the United States because its copyright has expired.

The exhibition was organized by the art dealer Ernest Gambart and held in the space that would soon become known as the French Gallery. The exhibition marked the first instance of a recognizably modern commercial art gallery, a development that profoundly changed the physical, economic and social relationships between artists, dealers, art objects and viewers.

Articles

Pamela Fletcher, “On the Rise of the Commercial Art Gallery in London”