The best London exhibitions to visit in 2026
From Tracey Emin to Frida Kahlo, and Schiaparelli to Anish Kapoor, discover the exhibitions you won’t want to miss this year
London’s exhibition calendar never disappoints – and 2026 is set to be a bumper year for the capital’s galleries. The new year will herald the arrival of landmark exhibitions by Britain’s biggest names such as Tracey Emin, who will be staging her largest ever showcase at the Tate Modern, and English painter David Hockney whose collection of digital works created during the 2020 lockdown will be on display for the first time.
Elsewhere, the likes of the V&A and The King’s Gallery will be delving deep into the sartorial history of Italian fashion house Schiaparelli and the late Queen Elizabeth II, with the latter marking her centenary in a fabulously fashionable way. Plus, don’t miss the opening of the V&A East Museum, the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary programme and landmark retrospectives on Frida Kahlo and Marilyn Monroe in the capital. Diaries at the ready – here are the best London exhibitions to visit in 2026.
Hawaiʻi: a kingdom crossing oceans at The British Museum
Celebrating Hawaiʻi’s royal heritage and its enduring connections with the UK, The British Museum’s latest exhibition marks the 200th anniversary of young King Kamehameha II (Liholiho) and Queen Kamāmalu travelling from Hawaiʻi to London – the first Hawaiian monarchs ever to visit the UK and, at the time, The British Museum. Their journey signified a remarkable moment of diplomacy between two island nations at opposite ends of the world and is now being brought to life in artistic form.
At its heart are two extraordinary royal treasures reunited for the first time since the 1800s: a magnificent feathered cloak (‘ahu‘ula) gifted by King Kamehameha to King George III, and the letter in which he petitioned the British Crown. Alongside these centrepieces are never before seen loans from the Bishop Museum in Hawaiʻi, presented through the guidance of Native Hawaiian stewards who have helped shape every aspect of the show.
When: 15 January – 25 May 2026
Where: Great Russell Street, WC1B 3DG
Visit britishmuseum.org
Inside Aardman: Wallace & Gromit and Friends at Young V&A
Need to entertain the kids during the February half term? Head to Young V&A’s third exhibition to step inside the world of Wallace and Gromit and its pioneering creators, Aardman, as it celebrates its 50th anniversary. Having created some of the most loved animated characters of all time, with a portfolio which also includes Chicken Run and Shaun the Sheep, Aardman’s new showcase will feature plenty of interactive activities so visitors can go behind the scenes of the animation process, from idea development and storyboarding to model making, filming and production, and post-production. More than 150 objects will be on display, including never-before-seen models, sets, and storyboards from Aardman’s archives. Sounds like a grand day out to us.
When: Opens 12 February 2026
Where: Cambridge Heath Road, E2 9PA
Visit vam.ac.uk
Chiharu Shiota: Threads of Life at the Southbank Centre
The Locked Room (2016). Image: Masanobu Nishino
Chiharu Shiota
Following her recent blockbuster exhibition at Paris’ Grand Palais, Threads of Life marks Berlin-based Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota’s first major solo exhibition in a London gallery. The takeover will see the artist weave immersive works from floor-to-ceiling across the Hayward Gallery’s top floor, accompanied by new large-scale sculptures, drawings, early performance videos and photographs. Best-known for her large-scale installations which engulf ordinary objects – such as shoes, keys, beds, chairs and dresses – within huge structures of woolen thread, Shiota’s work explores the body, memory, consciousness and the fragility of existence. This isn’t one to miss.
When: 17 February – 3 May 2026
Where: Hayward Gallery at the Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
Visit southbankcentre.co.uk
Tracey Emin: A Second Life at Tate Modern
Is This a Joke (2009) by Tracey Emin
My Bed (1998) by Tracey Emin. Image: Saatchi Gallery/Prudence C
This February, Tate Modern will stage the largest ever survey exhibition celebrating the life and work of world-renowned artist Dame Tracey Emin. Spanning her extraordinary 40-year career – from seminal installations made in the 1990s, to recent paintings and bronzes going on display for the first time – A Second Life marks the most significant exhibition of her life so far, tracing the key life events that have shaped her journey. Conceived in close collaboration with Emin, expect 90 works sharing experiences of love, trauma and personal growth and featuring her depiction of the female body to explore passion, pain and healing. Highlights include photographs from her first solo exhibition at White Cube, My Major Retrospective 1982-93, as well as Tracey Emin CV 1995: a self-portrait and first-person narration of her life up until that moment.
When: 27 February – 31 August 2026
Where: Tate Modern, Bankside, SE1 9TG
Visit tate.org.uk
David Hockney at Serpentine North
David Hockney in 2023. Image: Jean Pierre Gonçalves de Lima
A Year in Normandy by David Hockney
When the pandemic struck in 2020 and the UK went into lockdown, artist David Hockney turned to his iPad to create hundreds of digital images – and these incredible works will be shown for the first time at Serpentine North this spring. Using a vivid palette and incorporating playful, pop-like touches, Hockney captured the whole cycle of the year and its different seasons in digital form. The exhibition will also feature recent works such as the celebrated Moon Room which reflects his lifelong interest in the cycle of light and time passing, and A Year in Normandy: a 90m-long frieze, inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry, showing the change of seasons at the artist’s former studio in Normandy.
When: 12 March – 23 August 2026
Where: Kensington Gardens, W2 2AR
Visit serpentinegalleries.org
The Last Princesses of Punjab at Kensington Palace
In March 2026, Kensington Palace will open The Last Princesses of Punjab, marking the 150th birthday of princess and suffragette Sophia Duleep Singh, the goddaughter of Queen Victoria. For the first time, Queen Victoria’s childhood home will offer an intimate look into lives shaped by the Empire, focusing on Princess Sophia and the women who shaped her, including her sisters Catherine and Bamba, mother Bamba Muller, and grandmother Jind Kaur. Another focus of the exhibition is the princess’ activism, and The Last Princesses of Punjab explores her commitment to women’s suffrage through items including an original copy of The Suffragette featuring the iconic image of Singh selling copies of the newspaper at Hampton Court Palace, where she was granted a residence by Queen Victoria.
When: Opens 26 March 2026
Where: Kensington Gardens, W8 4PX
Visit hrp.org.uk
Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art at V&A South Kensington
Vogue 1936; two models wearing Schiaparelli. Image: Cecil Beaton/Conde Nast/Getty Images
Elsa Schiaparelli in Vogue 1940. Image: Fredrich Baker/Conde Nast/Getty Images
Spanning its foundations in the 1920s with Elsa Schiaparelli at the helm, to today’s creative director Daniel Roseberry, the V&A’s new Schiaparelli showcase will mark the UK’s first exhibition devoted to the Italian fashion house. Famous for its revolutionary surrealist fashion, blending high art with haute couture through collaborations with artists like Salvador Dalí, the exhibition will highlight Schiaparelli’s role as a pioneering female entrepreneur and the maison’s remarkable trajectory. More than 200 objects will be on display, including the V&A’s Skeleton and Tears dresses, the surreal Shoe hat made with Salvador Dalí, and artworks by Pablo Picasso, Jean Cocteau, and Man Ray.
When: Opens 28 March 2026
Where: Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL
Visit vam.ac.uk
Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style at The King’s Gallery
One of London’s most exciting exhibitions will be staged at The King’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace to host the largest and most comprehensive exhibition of late Queen Elizabeth II’s wardrobe. Through approximately 200 items, around half on display for the first time, Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style will chart the remarkable story of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch through clothing worn in all 10 decades of her life: from birth to adulthood, from princess to queen, and from off-duty style to diplomatic dressing for the global stage. Alongside clothing, jewellery, hats, shoes and accessories, visitors will discover never-before-seen design sketches, fabric samples and handwritten correspondence that reveal the behind-the-scenes process of dressing the most famous woman in the world and shed new light on the late Queen’s close involvement in the creation of her wardrobe.
Don’t miss one of the earliest surviving pieces of couture from her childhood – the silver lamé and tulle bridesmaid dress, designed by Edward Molyneux, that she wore aged eight for the 1934 wedding of her uncle the Duke of Kent to Princess Marina of Greece – and her wedding dress in 1947 and her Coronation dress in 1953, both of which were designed by famous British couturier Norman Hartnell.
When: 10 April – 18 October 2026
Where: Buckingham Palace, SW1A 1AA
Visit rct.uk
The Music is Black: A British Story at V&A East
V&A East Museum’s first landmark exhibition, The Music is Black: A British Story, reveals how Black British music has shaped global culture to tell a long-overdue story of Black excellence, struggle, resilience, and joy. Celebrating 125 years of Black music in Britain – featuring jazz, reggae, drum and bass, grime and beyond – it unveils hidden stories behind early 20th century pioneers, international music makers and today’s artists such as Sampha, Little Simz, Jorja Smith, Ezra Collective and more. V&A East will also launch a major partnership with BBC Music and collaborate on The Music is Black Festival with East Bank partners on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park to coincide with the exhibition – watch this space.
When: Opens 18 April 2026
Where: Parkes Street, E20 3AX
Visit vam.ac.uk
Skate 50 at the Southbank Centre
To mark 50 years of the Undercroft Skate Space, and as part of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary celebrations, the gallery will present Skate 50: a multimedia exhibition telling the history of London’s most iconic skateboarding space and the communities it has created. Featuring photography, moving image and sound to delve into the stories that have shaped the Undercroft Skate Space – which is widely considered as the birthplace of British skateboarding – the exhibition follows its opening in the 1960s to now being one of the oldest continuously used skateboarding locations in the UK.
Featured artists – all of whom have a personal connection to skateboarding – include filmmakers Winstan Whitter, Dan Magee and Jack Brooks, founder of skatewear brand Palace, Lev Tanju, animator Sofia Negri, skate collective Keep Rolling Project and sound artist Beatrice Dillon.
When: 5 May – 21 June 2026
Where: Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
Visit southbankcentre.co.uk
Marilyn Monroe: A Portrait at National Portrait Gallery
In celebration of Marilyn Monroe’s 100th birthday, and in association with the Marilyn Monroe estate, the National Portrait Gallery will present Marilyn Monroe: A Portrait from June until September. Through the lens of portraiture, this major exhibition will celebrate the life and work of one of the most famous women of the 20th century and highlight the impact she made on the world of art and photography. From the earliest pin-up photographs made when she was a young model named Norma Jeane, to her last interview for Life Magazine and the poignant final images taken on Santa Monica beach in 1962, the exhibition will bring together works by Andy Warhol, Pauline Boty, Cecil Beaton, Milton Greene and more.
When: 4 June – 6 September 2026
Where: St Martin's Place, WC2H 0HE
Visit npg.org.uk
Anish Kapoor at the Southbank Centre
Anish Kapoor. Image: George Darell
Tsunami (2018). Image: Dave Morgan/Anish Kapoor
As a centrepiece of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary programme, this landmark exhibition from Anish Kapoor marks his highly-anticipated return to the space after it was the first public gallery in the UK to host a major survey of his work in 1998. Curated by Ralph Rugoff, the show will span new monumental works that defy the boundaries of sculpture alongside seminal works, offering a series of spectacular encounters with Kapoor’s mind-bending art across the entire Hayward Gallery and its terraces.
When: 16 June – 18 October 2026
Where: Hayward Gallery at the Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
Visit southbankcentre.co.uk
Frida: The Making of an Icon at Tate Modern
Julien Levy, Frida Kahlo 1938. Image: Philadelphia Museum of Art
Frida Kahlo, Untitled [Self-portrait with thorn necklace and hummingbird] 1940. Image: Nickolas Muray/ Collection of Mexican Art
This summer, Tate Modern will present the first major exhibition exploring how Frida Kahlo became a global icon not only in the world of art, but also a cultural phenomenon. Through the lens of the artists she impacted and her own portfolio, Frida: The Making of an Icon will trace rise from a relatively unknown painter to one of the most famous people in the world. It marks the first time in the UK in more than two decades that visitors will be able to experience the full breadth of Kahlo’s evolution, including 30 of her rarely-seen works alongside photographs and personal artefacts.
Highlights include a selection of her most iconic self-portraits, including Self-Portrait (With Velvet Dress) (1926) and Self-Portrait with Loose Hair (1938), through which she embraced her Mexican heritage, queer self-image, feminist ideals, and experience as a disabled woman. Building on Tate Modern’s 2005 survey show, this exhibition spotlights Kahlo like you’ve never seen before.
When: 25 June 2026 – 3 January 2027
Where: Bankside, SE1 9TG
Visit tate.org.uk
Tim Walker’s Fairyland: Love and Legends at National Portrait Gallery
A new retrospective dedicated to one of Britain’s most famous photographers, Tim Walker, will arrive at the National Portrait Gallery this autumn. Slated as an exploration of queer identity, community, and love, it begins when he rose to prominence in the 1990s, famous for his unique style of whimsical photography inspired by fairytales and adventures. The exhibition, named Tim Walker’s Fairyland, features portraits of Chappell Roan, Lady Gaga, Pet Shop Boys, Hunter Schafer, Miriam Margolyes and Frank Ocean, as well as a bank of never-before-seen images collated from the past five years where he has been photographing dozens of activists, performers, artists, and writers in his inimitable style.
When: 8 October 2026 – 7 February 2027
Where: St Martin's Place, WC2H 0HE
Visit npg.org.uk
The 90s at Tate Britain
Curated by former British Vogue editor Edward Enninful, who has overseen some of the world’s biggest photoshoots throughout his career, The 90s examines a seminal decade which irrevocably changed British culture. As the Cold War ended and Britain began to emerge from recession, a new dawn heralded a wave of optimism, freedom, and rebellion which was felt across art, design, fashion and music. The exhibition will focus on the enduring influence of key figures who emerged from this time and those who photographed them, including iconic images by Juergen Teller, Nick Knight, David Sims and Corinne Day. Elsewhere, discover the work of artists like Damien Hirst, Gillian Wearing, and Yinka Shonibare, as well as fashion collections by decade-defining designers Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, and Hussein Chalayan.
When: 8 October 2026 – 14 February 2027
Where: Tate Britain, Millbank, SW1P 4RG
Visit tate.org.uk
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