Matt's Gallery

Don't ring up the gallery asking to speak to Matt - the name above the door refers to the gallery owner's dog, Matt E. Mulsion. Robin Klassnik, a graduate of Leicester College of Art, has variously worked in painting, sculpture, 8mm film and photography and the fruits of his labours have been exhibited nationally and internationally at venues including the Institute of Contemporary Art, Whitechapel Art Gallery and the Paris Biennale. Not only successful as an artist, his gallery - first started in 1979 in his studio - is well known as an East End bastion of modern art. The purpose-built gallery opened at this premises in Copperfield Road in June 1993 with funding from the Arts Council, England, the Henry Moore Foundation, and the Foundation for Sport and the Arts, encompassing two 1,500 sq ft gallery spaces, reading room, office and archive area. Klassnik designed the two gallerie spaces with the intention of allowing artists to work in one area whilst an exhibition runs in the other. As well as exhibiting established artists who find the need for an open approach which they cannot find elsewhere Klassnik is known to collaborate with and take a chance on little known and younger artists. A progressive and inclusive policy that nurtures raw talent.