The landmark exhibition will open the east London museum with a bang in 2026
The V&A East Storehouse, complete with the David Bowie archive, opened earlier this year and has already been a massive hit, and now we’ve got more details on what we can expect from the V&A East. The museum, opening at the Olympic Park in Stratford in April, will feature a restaurant from the Jikoni founders and two free permanent Why We Make galleries with over 500 objects across art, architecture, design, performance and fashion from the V&A’s collection.
Works from the likes of Leigh Bowery, Derek Jarman, Mr Pearl, Vivienne Westwood, Yinka Ilori, Althea McNish and Jo Spence will be displayed alongside historic pieces from the Italian Renaissance and 19th century India and Tibet. A new six-monthly commissions programme, running across both the V&A East Museum and the Storehouse, will present new works by Carrie Mae Weems, Es Devlin, Lawrence Lek, Rene Matić and more.
The opening exhibition for the museum sounds mega too. The Music Is Black: A British Story will celebrate 125 years of Black music in Britain and showcase the contribution that it has made to culture both here and around the world. The immersive exhibition will use a mix of never-before-seen items, instruments, equipment, personal possessions, photography, film, and fashion to take visitors through a range of genres, including jazz, reggae, 2 tone, drum & bass, jungle, trip hop, garage, dubstep, grime and drill.
The stories of a whole range of musicians, from early pioneers like Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Emile Ford and Janet Kay to pioneers like Goldie, Massive Attack, Jah Shaka and Saxon Sound to today’s groundbreaking artists like Sampha, Kano, Stormzy, Little Simz, Ezra Collective and FKA Twigs, will be explored in the show.
Nodding to the museum’s location, the exhibition will also spotlight the impact of East London on Black British music – Rinse FM was born in Bow, Lord of the Mics began in Jammer’s Leytonstone basement, Metalheadz bought us drum & bass at The Blue Note on Hoxton Square, and All Points East in Hackney has become one of the biggest festivals in the UK calendar. Music fans might have a while to wait for this one to open but it sounds like it’s gonna be worth it.
Key Information
Opening date | Sat 18th April 2025
Address | Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London, E20
For more information | vam.ac.uk
