CONTEMPORARY art finally has a home in Harrow – a public gallery that aims to enhance the borough’s cultural reputation. The hope is that a series of shows planned over the coming months will attract big names of the scene out to the suburbs, while simultaneously giving local artists a platform to showcase their work.

It is the brainchild of a collective called Exhibit, formed by several local artists about two years ago, which won a £10,000 grant from Arts Council London.

Some of the money was handed to Harrow Arts Centre, in Uxbridge Road, Hatch End, to convert a disused L-shaped room into The Gallery. The remainder is paying for the printing of catalogues, the building of a website and the publicity and marketing for the first exhibition, Culture, which runs for three weeks.

Exhibit co-founder Claire McDermott, who lives in South Harrow and was chairwoman of the now defunct Harrow Visual Arts Forum, said: “I didn’t want anyone to have to categorise themselves, so it was an ideal title. What art people are making is what we’re looking at and doing.

“We couldn’t attract artists to the arts centre until we had a secure gallery. We can now invite international artists and UK artists to exhibit with us in Harrow.

“We want to bring people to Harrow and for Harrow artists to go back out.”

Sculptors Jeff Lowe and Rob Ward are the two lead artists among the 12 who will have art on show.

Mrs McDermott is one of four local artists participating alongside conceptual sculptor and 2D, 3D and 4D artist Jane McAdam Freud, printmaker and mixed media artist Erika Wengenroth, who participates in Harrow Open Studios, and Susan Williams.

The UK-based artists are Julian Wild, Judith Nicholson, Damilola Odusote and Emma Cooper while sculptors Hartmut Stielow, based in Germany, and Maria Oriza Perez, based in Spain, complete the line-up.

Mrs McDermott said: “I was talking to Jeff Lowe – who has work in Berkeley Square at the moment, so he’s quite a renowned artist – and I told him about the exhibition and he offered us a print of one of his works.

“We talked a bit more and, by chance, he exhibited with Rob Ward at The Young Contemporaries exhibition in Camden.

“That was in 1975, similar to the later Brit Art movement, and I started to look into these connections and the arts centre started to be interested.

“They didn’t really ever have a reason before to have a permanent gallery, but now want to put Harrow on the arts map.

Rob Ward pointed her in the direction of the Henry Moore Foundation, which in turn put her in touch with Goldsmiths College, part of the University of London, and there came an agreement for art students from the college to curate exhibitions throughout the year. It does not end there, however.

“Susan and I went to a conference with sculpture artists organised by the Sculpture Network last year in Spain, in Bilbao, and that is where we met Hartmut and Maria,” said Mrs McDermott.

“As a result of the networking, Sculpture Network will rent The Gallery once a year so they can bring in international artists.”

The Gallery is a blank canvas space that presents itself as more flexible and adaptable for exhibitors, since its L shape gives more opportunity for experimentation than would a square box room with four equal walls.

Jo Saunders, manager of Harrow Arts Centre, said: “The room was previous called The Boardroom, and it’s opposite the box office.

“We’ve replastered the walls, the artists are painting the walls, and we have restored the original wooden floor, which is rather beautiful, and have installed a security system.

“It will be the first permanent exhibition space in the arts centre. We have the Corridor Galleries but we’re limited as to what we can do there.

“This new gallery will focus on contemporary work – stuff which may be more experimental – and we can show 3D work, which we can't show in the corridors, as well as installations and mixed media.”

The programme beyond Culture has not been finalised, but Claire McDermott said she would have a solo show, Jeff Lowe and Rob Ward would have two solo shows each and other exhibitions are in the pipeline.

Mrs McDermott said: “We want to bring the same artists that exhibit in central London to outer London.“We feel that’s what the exhibition is all about – there should be no difference.

“We want to get professionals working with local semi-professionals. Everyone is gaining something out of it and I’m excited by it.”

Arts centre manager Ms Saunders said: “After the first exhibition, we will run the gallery as part of our arts centre programme but Exhibit Art is helping us to work out what sort of things we want to put there, and to find curators who might work with us.

“We haven’t got a full programme yet, and we’re actually putting out a call for artists who would want to exhibit in the new gallery.

“There’s a hire fee for the artists of £30, just to cover the administration costs, and we won’t take any commission on sales.

“The gallery will be open from 9am to 5pm daily, the same time as the box office, although if exhibitors want times outside this they have to be present to invigilate."

Besides Culture, Jeff Lowe will be giving a talk alongside Rob Ward, Claire McDermott and others at Harrow Arts Centre on Saturday, September 22, at 1pm, as part of Open House London. Tickets are free but must be booked in advance.

n Culture runs until September 22 from 9am to 5pm daily and entry is free. For more information, call the box office on 020 8416 8989.