The Glasgow tenement unit known as Cheap Shop had been a sweet shop called Sugarplums in the 1970s, and used for storage more recently, but had been vacant for a long period when purchased, unseen, at auction.
Rotten timber beams were replaced with new steel structure to support the building above, and a collaboration with a collective of publishers, curators, gallerists and artists saw the unit renovated for gallery use. Known as 20 Albert Road and shared by Ivory Tars, Cento and Galerie 5b, the space now hosts a programme of exhibitions and events, and forms an important piece of the cultural infrastructure of the Glasgow's Southside.
On the street front, managed remotely during lockdown, a single subcontractor installed the oversized windows and roller shutter which provide maximum light and security. Above, a purely decorative galvanised frame, designed in collaboration with Daniel Stilwell, recalls a redundant piece of plant or a canopy in disrepair whilst echoing the imagined shapes of Sugarplums.
In extreme contrast with other projects, Cheap Shop was delivered as an exercise in economy of engagement, with the project never actually visited until complete and open to the public.
Photography by Duncan Blackmore, Neil Clements and Matthew Blunderfield
