The Painted Hall, The Old Royal Naval College
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![Three people walk into the entrance of a stone building next to a small black sign that says “Painted Hall.” The entrance is flanked by large arched windows with backlit coloured reproductions of a painting featuring angelic and human figures.]()
New permanent interpretation for one of the most important Baroque painted interiors in Europe.
The Painted Hall, Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich 2019.
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![A large curved interior window overlooks a café area with vaulted ceilings and café tables and chairs. A row of large warm lamps hang down the central spine of the room. A backlit display stands in front of the window, with text and images.]()
The Painted Hall sits within the Old Royal Naval College in London. It is part of the Greenwich World Heritage Site, and the buildings are Grade I Listed.
The project created a new entrance into the King William Undercroft beneath the Hall, a new welcome area, shop, café and exhibition gallery, and cohesive interpretation across the site.
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![Visitors sit and lie on red benches in a large room with tall gold walls with decorative features and large windows. Above them is an elaborate ceiling mural in golden hues. On the right a woman looks into a mirrored table to see the reflection.]()
We developed interpretation which was sensitive to the conservation requirements of this prestigious space. Carefully considered colours and materials reflected the architectural histories of the site. Upholstered leather day beds allowed visitors to sit and lie beneath the ceiling. Audio guides linked with physical interpretation through the building.
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![An entrance hallway with a red painted wall and a white stone obelisk at the end. The hallway also features a large image in a lightbox, and its entrance is flanked by reproductions of paintings of human and angel figures and a text panel.]()
An obelisk sculpture was co-created for the building entrance with students from the Building Crafts College. It features hand-carved astrological formations found on the Painted Ceiling, and acts as a wayfinding point for visitors.
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![A bronze relief of three human figures. A man and a woman wearing crowns in the centre and an unspecified robed figure on the left. Two doves sit at the woman’s feet. A mirror reflecting the painted ceiling with different figures depicted in it.]()
We worked with an access panel to collaboratively workshop designs. This resulted in mirrored tables for visitors to view the ceiling from below, and bronze reliefs of ceiling details, which provided enhanced tactile and braille access. High-quality printed reproductions of ceiling details were also provided in the Hall in book form.
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![Three blue nautical-themed duffel bags on a table. The bags are embroidered with a gold anchor and each has a brown leather book attached to it decorated with a gold anchor and the words "Sea Explorer Bag"]()
Sensory backpacks were designed as sailor’s ditty bags, which provided playful material for SEND families to explore the Painted Ceiling.
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![Two young girls playing with dressing up costumes. The girl on the right smiles as she tries on a velvet red crown with white fur trim. The girl on the left holds up a red gown with white trim. Signage in the background says “George I’s crown.”]()
Interactives included high-quality replicas of key elements of the Painted Ceiling, such as an astrolabe, Medusa's shield and a sun dial. Replicas of costumes were available for visitors to try on. Exhibit benches in the undercroft offered brass handling objects and question-and-reveal flaps.
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![Two café tables and chairs. The tabletops are printed with details from the Painted Ceiling, one of a union jack flag, the other of an astrolabe held by a human hand. There are tea cups and saucers on the table.]()
Details from the ceiling were introduced across the site, including 1:1 scale reproductions of elements of the painting on cafe tables. The main entrance to the building was flanked by full-size light boxes on the windows which reproduced parts of the painting at street level.
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![A large hole in a tiled floor reveals open brickwork, arches and walls below. It is surrounded by a glass balustrade with a patinated exhibition panel around its edge displaying text and diagrams. In the background, two figures walk down a staircase.]()
The unexpected discovery of Tudor ruins during renovations was incorporated into an in-situ exhibit providing interpretation about the architectural history of the site.
