With an unmissable season of art and culture ahead, fill your calendar with these world-class exhibitions.
With an unmissable season of art and culture ahead, fill your calendar with these world-class exhibitions.
Get your culture fix this summer at some of London’s most esteemed galleries. From the UK’s first exhibition dedicated to the Barbie universe, to historic portraits of Henry VIII’s wives, and sculptures revealing unsung Black histories, you’re never far from a showcase of trailblazing global art. We’ve compiled the best of the season for you to bookmark your diaries with.
Royal Portraits: A Century of Photography – The King’s Gallery
Marvel at one hundred years of regal photography in an appropriately royal setting at King’s Gallery in Buckingham Palace. There are more than 150 prints on display from the Royal Collection and Royal Archives by the likes of celebrated artists Dorothy Wilding, Annie Leibovitz and Cecil Beaton. This collection of photographic portraiture (many of which are being showcased for the first time) not only documents public and private moments from the Royal Family, but also the way in which photography as a creative and journalistic medium has changed throughout the last century. What’s more, national treasure Dame Joanna Lumley is the narrator of the exhibition’s free multimedia guide.
Credit: © 2024 The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Licensed by DACS, London.
Summer Exhibition 2024 – Royal Academy of Arts
Held at the historic Burlington House in Piccadilly, this is the world's oldest open-submission exhiand offers an unrivalled showcase of work by established and emerging global artists alike. For its 256th instalment, the theme is making space. “This can be interpreted in various ways,” says British sculptor and exhibition coordinator Ann Christopher. “To make space can mean openness – making space for something or someone, also making space between things.” A staple of culturists’ summer calendars, most of the pieces are available to purchase, with sales donated to the exhibiting artists and training the Royal Academy Schools’ next generation.
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 paper, 56.4 x 49 cm. Courtesy the artist and Frith Street Gallery, London. |
Beyond Fashion – Saatchi Gallery
Social media has transformed the way in which society participates in photography; over the last few decades, there’s been a seismic blur in the boundaries between editorial publishing, marketing and creativity in the fashion industry. With a collection of over 100 images from 48 artists, Beyond Fashion examines how fashion photography is one of the most groundbreaking mediums of our time: “It is the art world’s rising star,” says curator Nathalie Herschdorfer. Divided into four sections – Allure, Fantasy, Realism and Surrealism – the exhibition examines the contrasts of the artform and its potential to be both timeless and experimental.
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Tavares Strachan: There Is Light Somewhere – Hayward Gallery
A pioneer of contemporary art, Bahamian-born Tavares Strachan is on a mission to tell the tales of those overlooked in Western society. He spent nearly a decade creating a 3000-page almanac full of forgotten people, places, belief systems and objects, entitled ‘The Encyclopedia of Invisibility’. In a new immersive exhibition at the Hayward Gallery, this triumph of research is lifted off the page with sculpture, projection, collage, sound and mixed-media installations. The lives of pivotal Black figures are unerased and previously unsung heroes are given due recognition; it’s an inventive and revelatory challenge to the way we have taught, teach and will teach history.
and Mind Fields series, 2023-24. Photo: Mark Blower. Courtesy the artist and the Hayward Gallery.
Discover Degas & Miss La La – The National Gallery
The dizzying talent of circus performance was a huge fascination for Edgar Degas, the luminary of late-19th century French impressionism. Above all, the aerial act of Anna Albertine Olga Brown, known on stage as Miss La La, captured his creative attention. The third installment in The National Gallery’s ‘Discover’ series, the exhibition sheds new light on lesser-known pieces by famous artists. This summer, Degas’ 1879 painting of the acrobat at Cirque Fernando is on display and raises questions about social mobility in Europe, the racial identity and presentation of Miss La La, and the forward-thinking innovation of the artist himself.
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Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII’s Queens – National Portrait Gallery
One of the most notorious sagas in British history, the six wives of Henry VIII have been a point of cultural fascination for centuries. In the first historical exhibition since the National Portrait Gallery reopened, renowned 16th-century paintings by Hans Holbein sit alongside 21st-century portraiture by Hiroshi Sugimoto, and a host of other artwork, costume, literature and music in between. Six Lives walks you through the unique stories of Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr, dismantling the idea of a homogeneous group that existed solely in relation to Henry VIII. Instead, it reveals the individual identities of each Queen.
Yoshida: Three Generations of Japanese Printmaking – Dulwich Picture Gallery
Step into the illustrative world of this printmaking dynasty. From the 19th century to the present day, the Yoshida family has been pioneers of the artistic medium and helped shape its evolution. This exhibition is the first of its kind in the UK, spotlighting the beautiful work crafted by multiple generations as well as revealing how Japanese printmaking reflects and responds to wider socio-political events. There’s a site-specific installation of cherry blossoms by Ayomi, the youngest artist in the family, offering a full-circle moment to her grandfather Hiroshi’s visit to the Dulwich Picture Gallery in 1900.
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Barbie®: The Exhibition – The Design Museum
Commemorating 65 years of Barbie, The Design Museum has partnered with Mattel to exhibit over 250 pieces of this beloved universe. Bringing the iconic dreamhouse to life, architecture practice Sam Jacob Studio has created a colourful setting for the occasion. Expect to see bestselling Barbies from the late 20th century alongside the first Black, Hispanic and Asian dolls, as well as rare prototypes and modern-day editions. From fashion to film, art to social advocacy, Barbie has been an enduring icon of product and graphic design. This is the UK’s first major exhibition dedicated to the brand, offering visitors a nostalgic and enlightening journey through its evolution.
Stay: Read.
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