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Best Free Exhibitions in London
Best Free Exhibitions in London
You can still get cultured whilst saving some cash in London. Whether it’s wandering through art galleries, getting snap happy at photography exhibitions or admiring a quirky installation, here are our pick of the best free exhibitions in London. There are so many great museums and galleries in London, which means there are some incredible shows to see, from interactive exhibitions and art installations, to photography collections and immersive experiences.
London is blessed with world-class galleries and museums, with free entry to many of them, including Tate Modern, Tate Britain, the V&A, the Design Museum, the Science Museum, the British Museum, the Wellcome Collection, and the Natural History Museum, being totally free. That means you can check out incredible permanent collections, covering everything from fossils to Old Masters, without paying a penny. And if you’ve done all the big hitters, many smaller, independent art galleries in London also operate free entry, so you might just stumble across the next big thing at one of these free art exhibitions.
Keep your eyes peeled as you wander around the city’s different neighbourhoods too as there’s also of lot of public art to explore for free across London. Canary Wharf boasts an impressive collection of artworks, which is actually the largest free to visit public art exhibition in the UK with pieces by Camille Walala, Henry Moore, Ottotto and Helaine Blumenfeld.
Each year City of London works with artists and partners to curate a new trail of artworks that forms the annual sculpture park, Sculpture in the City. And you can’t miss Frieze Sculpture, where Regent’s Park is filled with installations each autumn to coincide with the annual Frieze London art fair. Current free faves include an exhibition dedicated to the music and musicians of Croydon and a display that showcases the history of communities led by the Abbess and nuns from c.666AD to the early 16th Century near Barking Abbey at the area’s brand new Women’s Museum.
So whether you’re looking for exhibitions today, exhibitions this weekend or you want to stay on top of all upcoming art exhibitions, we’ve got you covered.
Check Out This Immersive Oak Tree Installation at Kew Gardens
3rd May - 28th September 2025
Kew Gardens, Richmond
Experiential artist collective Marshmallow Laser Feast has created Of the Oak, Kew’s first ever outdoor digital art commission. The six-metre interactive video installation celebrates the oak tree as a hub of biodiversity by showcasing the inner workings of the Lucombe oak and highlighting the web of 2,300 species sustained in its ecosystem, using real-world data captured by Kew’s scientists and horticulturalists. The piece takes you on a sensory journey through the oak’s transformation across the seasons, where you can impact its motions on screen by moving in front of it, synchronise your breathing with its rhythms through a guided meditation, and see the way it sequesters carbon dioxide and releases oxygen. You’ll also be able to find out the more about the future of trees and how Kew is working to protect them as part of the experience.
Explore the Life and Work of Hiroshige at the British Museum
1st May - 7th September 2025
Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG
The British Museum is celebrating the life and work of one of Japan’s most popular and prolific artists with the Hiroshige: artist of the open road exhibition, the first-ever one on the artist at the Museum and the first in London for 25 years. Working during the last decades of the Edo period, a time of rapid change in Japan amidst the encroachment of the outside world, Hiroshige’s vision of Japanese daily life provided calm for the nation. A range of prints, drawings, paintings and illustrated books, featuring his depictions of landscapes, nature, city views, birds and flowers will be on display, showcasing his skills as a colourist and draftsman, and exploring his legacy and the impact he had on both European masters and contemporary artists around the world.
Feast on the World's Best Food Photography at This Exhibition
21st - 25th May 2025
The Mall, London SW1Y 5AS
See all 185 finalist images from the 2025 edition of the World Food Photography Awards at this free exhibition at Mall Galleries. The selection of images span growing and harvesting to cooking and eating from across the globe, showing that food truly is a universal language. Speaking about the Awards, founder Caroline Kenyon, said: “These images bring global food stories to life: whether the beauty or the drama of food, feast or famine, weddings or food aid. Food is the great leveller, the great unifier and the photography captures this so powerfully. We hope you will take this opportunity to enjoy the very best food photography in the world in London.”
See Whether Life Could Exist Beyond Earth at the Natural History Museum
16th May 2025 - 22nd February 2026
Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD
The Natural History Museum is going interplanetary with its next major exhibition, Space: Could Life Exist Beyond Earth? Experience some of the Museum’s latest scientific research with this multi-sensory show that explores the search for life beyond our planet. You’ll be able to explore different extraterrestrial environments, like the icy moons of Saturn and Jupiter; snap a selfie with a piece of Mars; touch a fragment of the Moon; check out a meteorite collection, including the Allende meteorite (which at 4.567 billion years old is older than Earth) and Ivuna (which is made from the same material as the Sun); guide a rover over rocky Martian terrain; and listen to the sounds of the Red Planet.
Discover the Role of Gardens and Flowers in the Work of Cecil Beaton
14th May - 21st September 2025
Garden Museum, Lambeth Palace Road, London SE1 7LB
Cecil Beaton’s Garden Party at the Garden Museum is the first exhibition to dive into the passion that the photographer and artist had for gardens and flowers, and the inspiration they provided for his work. Looking at his gardens at both Ashcombe House and Reddish House, the exhibition will showcase the role that flowers had in his creative practice, including floral installations for parties; painted and fresh flowers used as backdrops for fashion photography and royal portraits; and floral costumes created for Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady and in designs made for the Royal Ballet. A range of paintings, photographs, letters, drawings, costume sketches, and diaries will be on show, many of which have never been publicly displayed before.
Feel the Sound at This Multi-Sensory Exhibition at the Barbican
22nd May - 31st August 2025
Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London
The summer the whole of the Barbican Centre, from the foyer to the Lakeside to the car parks, is going to be transformed into an immersive exhibition that’ll change the way you think about and experience sound. Feel the Sound will explore how sound shapes emotions, memories and physical sensations, and encourage you to listen with your whole body and not just your ears. The show will feature a range of interactive installations, including a holographic choral experience; a piece that blends neuroscience and design to make our internal vibrations visible; two works that incorporate frequencies believed to have healing effects; kites carrying extracts of poetry about missing sound with BSL interpretations; and an installation celebrating boy racers and modified car sound systems.
See Early Works by David Hockney at This Exhibition
21st May – 18th July 2025
38 Bury Street, London SW1Y 6BB
Hazlitt Holland-Hibbert is bringing together a number of early works by David Hockney, some of which have not been shown together since the 1960s, with the In the Mood for Love: Hockney in London, 1960–1963 exhibition. The show is the first in-depth exploration of this pivotal period in Hockney’s career, following his breakthroughs at the Royal College of Art. The paintings and related works on paper on display, which include ‘The First Love Painting’, ‘Love Painting – Shame’, ‘The Cha Cha that was Danced in the Early Hours of 24th March 1961’, ‘Life Painting for Myself’ and ‘The Salesman’, show the development of Hockney’s visual language and his exploration of his sexuality, at a time when homosexuality was still criminalised in Britain.
The World Press Photo Exhibition Is Back in London
23rd May - 25th August 2025
MPB Gallery, Here East, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London, E15 2GW
After a successful return in 2024 following a seven-year hiatus, The World Press Photo Exhibition is back in London with a show at the MPB Gallery at Here East in Hackney Wick. The photos displayed in the exhibition are all entrants in this year’s World Press Photo Contest, a competition that showcases the best photojournalism and documentary photography from around the world. Over 61,000 entries from photographers from 130 countries were submitted for the 2024 contest and the images on display at the exhibition will give people a chance to think about social, environmental, political and cultural topics outside of the news cycle and explore how visual stories help to tackle important global issues.
The British Museum Is Exploring the Ancient Art of India
22nd May - 19th October 2025
Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG
With the Ancient India: living traditions exhibition, the British Museum is exploring the artistic and spiritual legacy of one of the world’s most influential civilisations. As well as bringing together thousands of years of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain religious imagery, the exhibition will feature over 180 objects including sculptures, paintings, drawings and manuscripts. The display will showcase how these ancient religions have shaped the country’s spiritual and artistic traditions, and how they continue to impact the daily lives of billions of people today.
The V&A Is Hosting a Major Exhibition on Cartier
12th April – 16th November 2025
Cromwell Road, London SW7 2RL
This show at the V&A will be the UK’s first major exhibition on Cartier in almost 30 years. Featuring over 350 objects, including jewels, watches and clocks, the show will explore how the Maison grew to become one of the preeminent names in the jewellery and watch world, beloved by royals and the rich all over the globe. Highlights include the Williamson Diamond brooch, featuring the 23.6 carat pink Williamson diamond, commissioned by Queen Elizabeth II in 1953; the Scroll Tiara worn to the coronation of Elizabeth II, and by Rihanna on the cover of W magazine in 2016; a rose clip brooch worn by Princess Margaret at the Queen’s coronation; and Grace Kelly’s 1956 engagement ring.
Secret 7" Is Returning to NOW Gallery for 2025
11th April - 1st June 2025
NOW Gallery, Greenwich Peninsula, London SE10 0SQ
Secret 7″ is back again for 2025. The concept is the same: seven amazing songs are each pressed 100 times into 7” singles, paired with a one-of-a-kind sleeve created by a leading name in the art world and auctioned off. What’s the secret? Well, you won’t know which single you’ve bought or who designed the sleeve, until you’ve parted with your cash. The singles this year include Gregory Porter’s ‘Return to Paradise’, Jessie Ware’s ‘Beautiful People’, Scissor Sisters’ ‘Return to Oz’ and Keane’s ‘Black Rain’, and the designers are currently being selected. And the artists doing the sleeves this year include Anthony Gormley, Yinka Ilori, Sir Paul Smith, Rana Begum, Robert Smith and Yooyun Yang, so you could well end up with a mini-masterpiece. The singles will be on display at NOW Gallery in Greenwich this spring before they get auctioned off to raise money for War Child.
Uncover the Secrets of the Thames at This Exhibition
4th April 2025 – 1st March 2026
West India Quay, Hertsmere Rd, London E14 4AL
The London Museum Docklands is hosting the UK’s first major exhibition dedicated to mudlarking, where people unearth objects from London’s past when the tides recede to expose the riverbed of the Thames. Over 350 mudlarked objects, ranging from personal items to historic relics will be on display at the Secrets of the Thames exhibition. You’ll also be able to learn how mudlarks explore the river’s foreshore, uncover artefacts and curate their own collections, as well as reflect on the role that the moon and the tides have on the river and on mudlarking.
Marvel at the Diversity of the Natural World at the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition
Until 29th June 2025
Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London
The 60th Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition is being hosted at the Natural History Museum. The display features awarded images selected around from tens of thousands of entries and it showcases the beauty and diversity of the natural world. See everything from emu chicks walking across sand dunes to manatee calves in the water depicted in the photographs.
1880 THAT Is the First Major London Exhibition by Christine Sun Kim and Thomas Mader
17th April – 16th November 2025
183 Euston Road, London NW1 2BE
Berlin-based artists Christine Sun Kim and Thomas Mader, who have been collaborating for over a decade, are presenting 1880 THAT at the Wellcome Collection, making it their first major exhibition in London. The exhibition explores the complexities of communication, the relationship between sign language and spoken language, and what it means to live with the threat of losing your language. The exhibition takes its name from the Second International Congress on Education of the Deaf that was held in Milan in 1880, where policymakers pushed oral education over sign language, leading to the stigmatisation of Deaf people. With works spanning drawings, film and sculpture, Kim and Mader use humour to showcase the ripple effects that the Milan conference has had on Deaf education and identity.
The Barbican Music Library Is Showcasing the Impact of Black British Music
Until 19th July 2025
Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London EC2Y 8DS
Following its popular exhibition on emo music, the Barbican Music Library is now hosting a groundbreaking exhibition that showcases the impact that Black British music from the last 100 years has had around the world. Black Sound London covers everything from jazz and lover’s rock to grime, jungle and drill, and explores how artists, ranging from Lord Kitchener to Dizzee Rascal, have shaped the city’s (and the world’s) music scene. The exhibition features mixtapes, magazine covers, merchandise and more, with the public also invited into contribute items to the display.
David Hockney: Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away) Is Back at Lightroom
30th April - 29th June 2025
12 Lewis Cubitt Walk, London N1C 4DY
After opening new immersive art gallery Lightroom in King’s Cross in 2023 with David Hockney: Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away), and then returning for a second run in 2024, the British artist is bringing his exhibition back to the venue for a third time. The show brings together 60 years of the artist’s work in a cycle of six themed chapters, alongside a specially composed score by Nico Muhly and commentary by Hockney himself. The experience will see the likes of ‘Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)’, ‘A Bigger Grand Canyon’ and other iconic pieces shape a theatrical exploration of Hockney’s career, from the 60s to the present day; LA to Yorkshire to Normandy.
Learn About the Craft of Japanese Carpentry at Japan House
12th March – 6th July 2025
101-111 Kensington High Street, London W8 5SA
Japan House is exploring the country’s carpentry culture with The Craft of Carpentry: Drawing Life from Japan’s Forests exhibition. Rooted in a respect for nature and trees, the woodworking tradition in Japan stretches back thousands of years, and you can learn about that rich history at this show. There’ll be displays centred around three core aspects of Japanese carpentry: Dōmiya daiku (temple and shrine carpenters); sukiya daiku (teahouse carpenters); and kigumi (wood joinery). A full-scale reconstruction of the Sa-an teahouse, originally constructed in Kyoto’s Zen temple Daitoku-ji, will be at the heart of the exhibition, giving you the chance to get up close to its design. There’ll also be a chance for you to try assembling wood joints without the need for nails using ancient Japanese techniques.
Explore the Relationship Between Design and Swimming at This Exhibition
28th March – 17th August 2025
224, 238 Kensington High Street, Kensington, London W8 6AG
Splash! A Century of Swimming and Style at the Design Museum is examining design’s role in our relationship with swimming over the past 100 years, from the lido boom in the early 20th century right up to the mermaidcore trend of the 2020s. Over 200 objects will be on show at the exhibition, including Pamela Anderson’s iconic red swimsuit from Baywatch, one of the earliest surviving examples of the bikini, the banned ‘technical doping’ LZR Racer swimsuit, and a detailed model of the London Aquatics Centre designed for the 2012 Olympics by Zaha Hadid.
Serpentine Is Hosting the First Solo Exhibition of Arpita Singh Outside India
20th March – 27th July 2025
Serpentine North Gallery, West Carriage Drive, London
Remebering at Serpentine North is the first institutional solo exhibition of Arpita Singh’s work in London and the first to be held outside of Inida. Featuring work from across her six decade long career, the exhibition showcases the way she uses colour and mark making to explore social upheaval and humanitarian crises. Pieces ranging from large-scale oil paintings to smaller watercolours and ink drawings will be on display, offering a chance to see her painting practice, which blends surrealism, figuration and Indian Court painting narratives, up close.
An Immersive Tutankhamun Exhibition Has Come to London
28th March - 29th June 2025
ImmerseLDN, Excel Waterfront, London
Travel back in time to the land of the pharaohs at Immerse LDN with Tutankhamun: The Immersive Exhibition. Thanks to plenty of cutting-edge tech, the exhibition will allow you to experience Ancient Egypt and the legend of the Boy King like never before. Inside there’s an 8-metre high video mapping room, one of the largest of its kind in Europe, where 360º projections of Egypt’s landscapes, the life of Tutankhamun and the discovery of his tomb featuring the voice of Howard Carter will be displayed. You’re able to go on a VR journey through the Egyptian afterlife and take an AR metaverse walk through the Valley of the Kings. The London exhibition is also hosting the world premiere of the Hologram Room, recreating the mummification process of Tutankhamun. There’s some original Egyptian artefacts and replica pieces from Cairo, including vases, statuettes and funerary shabtis dating back to 4000 BC, displayed across a treasure room to really root you in the history of the period.
See Iconic Images from The Face at This Exhibition
20th February - 18th May 2025
National Portrait Gallery, Saint Martin's Place, London
From 1980 – 2004, The Face magazine had a leading hand in shaping the cultural landscape in the UK – a young Kate Moss was featured, alongside other models and musicians who went on to achieve global success, and the mag also launched the careers of many photographers and stylists. Re-launched in 2019, The Face continues to champion new talent, culture and creativity. Now you can look back over some of the most iconic fashion images and portraits featured in the magazine at The Face Magazine: Culture Shift exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. Over 200 photographs from more than 80 photographers, including Sheila Rock, Stéphane Sednaoui, Corinne Day, David Sims, Elaine Constantine and Sølve Sundsbø, will be on display.
An Exhibition Dedicated to Leigh Bowery Has Come to London
27th February - 2nd September 2025
Tate Modern, Bankside, London
A true multi-hyphenate – he was an artist, performer, model, musician, fashion designer, model, club promoter and TV personality – Leigh Bowery led an extraordinary life. He became a fixture on London’s nightlife scene in the 1980s (he created the club Taboo) and a muse to Lucien Freud, and left a huge legacy following his passing from an AIDS-related illness in 1994. The Leigh Bowery! exhibition at Tate Modern is exploring his influence on the likes of Alexander McQueen, Anohni, Boy George and Lady Gaga, as well as showcasing the creative scenes in London and New York during his lifetime. Many of Bowery’s iconic ‘looks’ will be on display alongside his collaborations with the likes of Michael Clark, Nick Knight, Fergus Greer, Nicola Rainbird, Mr Pearl, and Lucian Freud.
Tate Modern Is Exploring the Relationship Between Art and Technology Before the Internet
28th November 2024 – 1st June 2025
Bankside, London SE1 9TG
Remember the world pre-internet? That’s what Tate Modern is taking us back in time with its blockbuster exhibition Electric Dreams: Art and Technology Before the Internet. The show will showcase how artists used machines and algorithms to make art between the 1950s and the early 1990s, engaging with mathematical principles, early digital tech and new computing systems to produce optical, kinetic and sensory artworks. By displaying pieces made with vintage technology, the exhibition also provides a look back at how artists imagined the visual language of the future.
Vogue Has Opened an Immersive Fashion Exhibition in London
Until 29th June 2025
12 Lewis Cubitt Walk, London N1C 4DY
The next immersive exhibition to take up residence inside Lightroom is Vogue: Inventing the Runway, which explores the history of the fashion runway show, from the couture salon presentations of the early 20th century to the large-scale spectacles of today. Blending original animation, immersive sound design, popular and classical music, Vogue’s extensive archive, rare materials from fashion houses, and testimonies from editors, models and designers, the exhibition takes you backstage and front row to showcase how runways revolutionised the way we experience fashion, evolving from an opportunity to see clothes in motion to global cultural events. The likes of Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Burberry, Chanel, Chloé, Christian Dior, Comme des Garçons, Coperni, Courrèges, Dolce & Gabbana, Dries Van Noten, Fendi, Givenchy, Gucci, Jacquemus, Jean Paul Gaultier, Junya Watanabe, JW Anderson, Louis Vuitton, Maison Margiela, Marc Jacobs, Miu Miu, Moschino, Prada, Rick Owens, Schiaparelli, Stella McCartney, Thierry Mugler, Thom Browne, Versace, Vivienne Westwood, and Yohji Yamamoto are all featured, giving you the chance to get up close to these designers, their identities and their visions in an unprecedented way.
A Major Tim Burton Exhibition Has Come to London
Until 26th May 2025
36 Penywern Rd, London SW5 9SU
The World of Tim Burton at the Design Museum not only explores the filmmaker and animator’s legendary on-screen career, but also his work as an illustrator, painter, photographer and author. Organised by Jenny He (who recently curated the first comprehensive exhibition dedicated to ‘Pope of Trash’ John Waters at the Academy Museum in Los Angeles), the show comprises pieces from Burton’s personal archive that span the artist’s creative journey from childhood to the present day. Expect to see over 600 items, including drawings, paintings, photographs, sketchbooks, props, sculptural installations, storyboards, set designs, costumes (including 1992’s Catwoman suit and the first ever public display of the Rave’N dance dress worn by Jenna Ortega in Wednesday) and more that encapsulate Burton’s distinct style.
This Is the World's First Sculpture Garden Dedicated to the Work of Women Artists
3rd October 2024 – September 2025
The Artist's Garden, The Artist's Garden, Roof Terrace, London
MARY MARY presented with theCOLAB at the Artist’s Garden, on a roof terrace on top of Temple tube station, is the world’s first sculpture garden featuring the work of women artists. Pieces by Rong Bao, Candida Powell–Williams, Alice Wilson, Lucy Gregory, L R Vandy, Olivia Bax, Frances Richardson, Holly Stevenson and Virginia Overton. The show represents a reclamation of space by women artists, both physically and conceptually, whose representation in galleries and collections is below 30%.
See the Natural World in a New Way at Outernet
Until summer 2025
Outernet London, Charing Cross Rd, London
LA-based artist Maggie West is showcasing her style of time-lapse photography and colouration effects at Outernet, presenting a series of works showing the detail of the natural world across The Now Building, Now Trending and Now Arcade. The first section, Terra, covers a night on Earth across different climates, from an arid desert to a tropical rainforest. Pools moves from giant landscapes to grains of sand, and the final section, Ultraviolet, illuminates the way plants absorb water by using ultraviolet light and fluorescent ink. The show is accompanied by a dreamlike score by LA-based composer Matt Nordstrom.
The London Transport Museum is Showcasing the History of Poster Art and Design
20th October 2023 - 2025
London Transport Museum, London
The London Transport Museum is opening its Global Poster Gallery, its first permanent gallery dedicated to the history of poster art and design, with the How to Make a Poster exhibition. The inaugural display will explore poster commissioning and creativity in the pre-digital age, with more than 110 pieces on show. The Underground’s first ever pictorial poster, John Hassall’s 1908 work ‘No need to ask a p’liceman’ by John Hassall alongside posters by designers and artists like Edward McKnight Kauffer, Man Ray, Hans Unger, Abram Games, Tom Eckersley, Paul Catherall, and Dora M Batty. The various techniques used in poster production will also be showcased in the exhibition as well as the way the posters were displayed and the reception they received from both London travellers and the art world.
Soak Up Vincent Van Gogh's Masterpieces From All Angles
Until 30th June 2025
Commercial Street, London E1 6LZ
Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience has been a hit in the States and in Europe and now it has come to Spitalfields. The exhibition sees more than 300 of Van Gogh’s works projected across a floor-to-ceiling two-storey space so you’ll be able to soak up the art from all angles. There’s also a drawing studio and a VR experience that takes you through a day in the life of the artist and explores the inspiration behind some of his most iconic paintings.
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