GIBRALTAR TO WELCOME ITS FIRST MAJOR ART MUSEUM
Fortress House, a new private contemporary art museum, is set to debut in Gibraltar in autumn 2025. The institution will be the first major art museum to open in the tiny British Overseas Territory, located at the tip of the Iberian Peninsula, and will house a collection of works mainly made after 1970, the majority of them by women and many addressing issues of identity and the individual’s relationship to society. The museum’s exhibition program aims to support an inclusive art-historical narrative.
Designed by local firm Gamma Architects and situated in the heart of the Old City, Fortress House will occupy a colonial-era Georgian structure that during the eighteenth century served as the residence of the governor of Gibraltar. Once refurbished and expanded, the roughly 29,000-square-foot building will boast a ground-floor double-height space meant to accommodate large-scale artist commissions. Other features include a rooftop sculpture garden, an art education center, and a pair of cafes.
The institution is being led by director Henry Little; its founder and collector remains anonymous. Among the artists whose work is held in the permanent collection of Fortress House are Louise Bourgeois, Michael Craig-Martin, Tracey Emin, Lucian Freud, Antony Gormley, Jenny Holzer, Alex Katz, Hew Locke, Sarah Lucas, Zanele Muholi, Bruce Nauman, Shirin Neshat, Grayson Perry, Paula Rego, Cindy Sherman, Kiki Smith, and Rebecca Warren. Intended to support the local arts scene and to foster cultural exchanges with neighboring countries and institutions, Fortress House will also welcome guest curators and present exhibitions by international artists.
“We’re trying to define Gibraltar as a cultural destination,” Little told Ocula. “That scale of ambition is large but is very much in line with the scale of the investment and commitment we are making.”
