Our Story
The Pickle District
The Pickle District is a burgeoning arts hub in West Perth. We bring people together through creativity, community and events.
Nestled between the city, Leederville and Northbridge, this lightly industrial area is home to art galleries, design and photography studios, and event spaces.
The Pickle District represents a specific part of Perth history. With the community’s help, we’re continuing its story and making it a vibrant little pocket of Perth.
A brief history
Why “The Pickle District”? The original Tandy’s Preserves and Pickle Factory which operated in this area in 1917 inspired our name. Back then, residents would line up for pickles while complaining about the noxious vinegar odours wafting from the factory. The Old Pickle Factory still stands 100 years later.
Part of a fast-growing city, West Perth has gone through many changes. The Pickle District has been here for it all – horse and carriages, trams, buses and cars. And of course, the many characters who have passed through these parts!
The Pickle District was once Lake Sutherland. The wetlands, a collection of fresh-water swamps and lakes, covered many parts of Perth, some of which were drained over the 1880s to make way for buildings.
From the 1870s, market gardens were grown nearby with fruit and vegetables lining the lake bed. The district was a residential area between 1920 and 1946 before businesses took over in the 50s and 60s, turning it into a light industrial zone.
With the construction of the Mitchell Freeway in the 1970s, the area became split off from the City of Perth. It stayed within the city’s precinct until the establishment of the City of Vincent in 1994.
Burgeoning arts scene
With art deco buildings, early 20th century warehouses, street art scattered on otherwise blank walls, and laneways joining it all, this pocket of Perth seemed ripe with possibility.
Around March 2018, the sole resident of the area noticed an influx of creative businesses, including MAISON, Backlot Cinemas, Holmes a Court Gallery, STALA Contemporary, Obscure View, Linton and Kay, Fridays Studio, Cleaver Street Co and No.7 Events.
“Hey! This is a pretty cool area,” the resident said. So he set to work. Collaborating with the Town Team Movement, City of Vincent and the businesses and landowners within the precinct, he formed a group to figure out how best to celebrate the creative space.
In November 2018, the group became a not-for-profit incorporated association, named the West End Arts Precinct. A year later, with the desire to pay homage to the area’s history, we rebranded to The Pickle District.
The creative businesses in the area continue to entice the community to drop in and explore. There are exciting things on the horizon for The Pickle District. Stay tuned!