Waterside Contemporary was founded in 2008 by Pierre d'Alancaisez as the Waterside Project Space, named after the Waterside building on Wharf Road in which it was located. Initially an artist-run not-for-profit, the gallery became commercially active in 2010 with a presentation at ViennaFair. Olga Ovenden became co-director with the gallery's move to nearby Hoxton. The gallery stopped exhibiting operations under the Waterside name in 2017.
