The Canterbury Society of Arts Gallery, was an

art gallery An art gallery is a room or a building in which visual art is displayed. In Western cultures from the mid-15th century, a gallery was any long, narrow covered passage along a wall, first used in the sense of a place for art in the 1590s. The lon ...

in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It consisted of two buildings built in the late 1800s. The buildings were demolished in 2012 due to damage from the Canterbury earthquakes. Benjamin Mountfort designed the first building in 1890, costing a total of £1,229. It consisted of a large gallery, and some smaller rooms, one that was meant for use as a library. A second building, designed by Richard Harman was completed in 1894. In 1968 the Canterbury Society of Arts gallery moved to larger premises at 66 Gloucester Street and in 1996, was rebranded CoCA Centre of Contemporary Art, the name it is known by today.

Demolition

The Ministry of Justice was the tenant of the building during the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010 and 2011. They deemed it too expensive to repair the building and the move to demolish the building was backed by building owners Ngāi Tahu. The

Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA; Māori: ''Te Mana Haumanu ki Waitaha'') was the public service department of New Zealand charged with coordinating the rebuild of Christchurch and the surrounding areas following the 22 Februar ...

supported the action citing the old gallery as an earthquake risk. The New Zealand Historic Places Trust (now Heritage New Zealand) had previously assessed the building and found it largely undamaged.

References

Buildings and structures in Christchurch Culture in Christchurch Art museums and galleries in Christchurch Art museums established in 1890 Infrastructure completed in 1894 Buildings and structures demolished in 2012 Buildings and structures demolished as a result of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake 1890s architecture in New Zealand Arts organisations based in New Zealand {{NewZealand-struct-stub