Records of the Drian Galleries

The Drian Galleries were founded in 1957 by Polish émigré Halima Nalecz [also written 'Nałęcz' in Polish orthography] (1914-2008) in a former butcher's shop in Porchester Place, Paddington, London. She later recalled that it had 'meat-hooks hanging from the ceiling, an ancient cash desk, saw-dust on the floor, and a marble top front'.

Nalecz had already co-founded the New Vision Centre Gallery the previous year with Denis Bowen and Frank Avray Wilson, but now wanted to branch out on her own. She arrived at the name 'Drian' by shortening that of the artist Mondrian, which she picked out of an art book at random.

The Drian initially specialised in abstract art, which was then still a minority interest in Britain. Nalecz had studied in Paris, and she put on exhibitions by many artists from France, Poland, and further afield. She also gave early shows to British artists such as William Crozier and John Bellany. Over the course of the Drian's existence, over 400 artists were exhibited; at its peak of activity, there were new shows every two to three weeks.

The gallery expanded its premises in 1960 – leading to a change of name from an originally singular 'Gallery' to 'Galleries' – but contracted again amid the challenging economic climate of the mid-1970s. It nevertheless managed to survive to the end of the 1980s, finally ceasing operations in 1998. Nalecz donated her collection of several hundred works by Drian artists to museums in Warsaw and Gdańsk.

A selection of material from the Drian archive, donated to Tate in 2000, has been digitised as part of the Émigré Arts Project, generously funded by the Marie-Louise von Motesiczky Charitable Trust.

Collection Owner

Halima Nalecz 1917 – 2008

Collection

Tate Archive

Acquisition

Presented to Tate Archive by Halima Nalecz, October 2000.

Reference

TGA 200023