Discover the Entrance Hall

Aberdeen Art Gallery was designed by the architect A. Marshall Mackenzie (1848-1933). Initially it was used for the exhibitions of the Aberdeen Artists Society and for Industrial Exhibitions.

The central court has a classical design and was opened in April 1905. It's design and proportions are modelled on the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence and the balustrade on the Cathedral porch, Spoleto. The central court is constructed of granite exterior, with marble floor and staircase. Uniquely, each column was made of a different type of granite.

This picture show how the central court looked in 1905. The central court originally contained a collection of plaster casts from which the art students, at the newly established Gray’s School of Art, then next to the Art Gallery, could practice drawing.