The history of the College is closely linked with that of the
South London Gallery, with which the College shares its site. The manager of the
South London Working Men's College in 1868, William Rossiter, purchased the freehold of Portland House on which the College now stands in 1889. The resulting Gallery opened in 1891, followed by the Technical Institute in 1898. The architect was
Maurice Bingham Adams. Originally, the school offered classes in specific trades. By 1920, a Fine Art Department had been created. During the
Second World War,
Victor Pasmore was appointed head of the painting department. Many well-known artists, including
Frank Auerbach,
Lawrence Gowing and
Edward Ardizzone taught at Camberwell during this period. In 1973, the School expanded into a modern purpose-built block next to the existing premises. Both of them are now
Listed Buildings. In the 1980s, Wendy Smith became the head of Fine Art and employed
Noel Forster,
John Hilliard,
Cornelia Parker,
Phyllida Barlow,
Gavin Jantjes and
Ian McKeever. Tony Messenger and
Eileen Hogan took charge of the graphics department,
Eileen Hogan established and ran
The Camberwell Press, and
Eric Ayers presided over the typography school. Camberwell temporarily lost its Fine Art courses but by 2004 the department had been fully restored to the College. ==Affiliations==