Welcome to the IanVisits alternative guide to London.
Lectures, talks, heritage events, organised walks and other random geeky miscellany.
This is quite an old listings page, did you want: Saturday, 3rd August 2024?
Displayed in date order by how soon they close.
Ten years of awe-inspiring images shot by astrophotographers worldwide. (Ending Soon Sun, 4th Aug)
Royal Observatory Greenwich
Comprising 65 prints and drawings, this exhibition highlights Rembrandt’s technical and creative ingenuity on paper. (Ending Soon Sun, 4th Aug)
The British Museum
In this, the first major museum display of artists’ postcards, discover both the politics and playfulness of this unique collection of 300 postcards. (Ending Soon Sun, 4th Aug)
The British Museum
An exhibition of kaleidoscopic sculptures, installations and video works informed by scientific processes and natural phenomena such as heat, cold, magnetism and light. (Ending Soon Sun, 18th Aug)
Hayward Gallery
An exhibition exploring 300 years of lunar and celestial cartography from early astronomers in the 17th century to the Apollo 11 mission in July 1969 and beyond. (Ending Soon Wed, 21st Aug)
The Map House
This display focuses on the rarely seen archives of queer venues and social networks collated by University College London’s Urban Laboratory. (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Aug)
Whitechapel Gallery
This exhibition explores the forgotten industrial history of plastic in east London around the River Lea.
(Ending Soon Sun, 25th Aug)
Nunnery Gallery
£16.50
AI: More than Human
Prepare for your preconceptions of AI to be challenged by this timely exhibition, that reflects on how this technology impacts our very existence. (Ending Soon Mon, 26th Aug)
Barbican Centre
One of the biggest mysteries in physics today is what exactly makes up our Universe, and why – 95 per cent of it cannot be observed. (Ending Soon Mon, 26th Aug)
Science Gallery London
£19.50
Manga
Enter a graphic world where art and storytelling collide in the largest exhibition of manga ever to take place outside of Japan. (Ending Soon Mon, 26th Aug)
The British Museum
More than 50 Lego models will be on show, from individual pieces, to awe-inspiring dioramas and mosaics. (Ending Soon Tue, 27th Aug)
Horniman Museum
Discover the extraordinary history behind one of humankind’s greatest achievements: how we write (Ending Soon Tue, 27th Aug)
The British Library
An exhibition of the works to restore a Victorian building back to a public community centre. (Ending Soon Wed, 28th Aug)
Oxford House
This display showcases examples of her childhood sketches and domestic projects alongside her famous illustrations that came later. (Ending Soon Thu, 29th Aug)
Victoria and Albert Museum
An exhibition that examines how we navigate, document and shape the built environment today. (Ending Soon Fri, 30th Aug)
The Building Centre
A heritage exhibition revealing the stories of the people that shaped London’s Chinatown into the iconic district it is today. (Ending Soon Fri, 30th Aug)
China Exchange
Free
Illuminated River
The Illuminated River display includes architectural drawings and animations of the project, alongside historic Thames paintings. (Ending Soon Sun, 1st Sep)
Guildhall Art Gallery and Roman Amphitheater
This exhibition celebrates the work and life of Lee Krasner (1908–1984), a pioneer of Abstract Expressionism. (Ending Soon Sun, 1st Sep)
Barbican Centre
See an epic 20 feet panorama depicting the lost Houses of Parliament on display. (Ending Soon Sun, 1st Sep)
Museum of London
This exhibition shines a spotlight on a brief but intense period of dynamic printmaking during the interwar period, with the first major show of work by artists from the Grosvenor School of Modern Art. (Ending Soon Sun, 8th Sep)
Dulwich Picture Gallery
£15.50
Kiss My Genders
A group exhibition celebrating more than 30 international artists whose work explores and engages with gender identity. (Ending Soon Sun, 8th Sep)
Hayward Gallery
For the first time in the UK see selections from three of Leonardo da Vinci’s extraordinary notebooks to explore his fascination with motion. (Ending Soon Sun, 8th Sep)
The British Library
Bringing together drawings and objects in the spaces of Sir John Soane’s Museum, this exhibition examines Soane’s innovative use of light and optical devices in architectural design. (Ending Soon Sun, 8th Sep)
Sir John Soane's Museum
This exhibition explores the processes and practices of both historic and contemporary Peruvian costume via garments, textiles, photographs, tools, illustrations and paintings (Ending Soon Sun, 8th Sep)
Fashion and Textile Museum
An immersive retrospective exhibition devoted to presenting a revolutionary survey of rave culture through the voices and lenses of those who experienced it. (Ending Soon Sat, 14th Sep)
Saatchi Gallery
£18
Cindy Sherman
A major new retrospective of works by leading contemporary artist Cindy Sherman. (Ending Soon Sun, 15th Sep)
National Portrait Gallery
This exhibition brings together the worlds of psychology and entertainment in search of the truth about deception. (Ending Soon Sun, 15th Sep)
Wellcome Collection
Step inside the world of Stanley Kubrick, one of the greatest filmmakers of the 20th century. (Ending Soon Sun, 15th Sep)
The Design Museum
An exhibition of the Lacquer Work of Koyanagi Tanekuni (Ending Soon Sat, 21st Sep)
Brunei Gallery
This free exhibition explores the political and social background to the Peterloo massacre and Parliament’s reaction to it. (Ending Soon Thu, 26th Sep)
Palace of Westminster
Through more than 80 paintings and prints, this exhibition reveals Vallotton’s body of work, including portraits, landscapes and satirical prints. (Ending Soon Sun, 29th Sep)
Royal Academy of Arts
This exhibition looks at how modern board games, educational toys, gambling and role-playing games reflect, inform and shape our understanding of economics and money. (Ending Soon Sun, 29th Sep)
The British Museum
Fantasy and folly take centre stage in a spellbinding exhibition of more than 80 fans, on display for the first time in the UK... (Ending Soon Sun, 29th Sep)
The Fan Museum
See remarkable never-before-displayed original illustrations and photographs. (Ending Soon Tue, 1st Oct)
Natural History Museum
The design of the 2019 Serpentine Pavilion is made by arranging slates to create a single canopy roof that appears to emerge from the ground of the surrounding Park. (Ending Soon Sun, 6th Oct)
Serpentine Gallery
To mark the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, The Queen's Gallery, Buckingham Palace will display the largest exhibition of Leonardo's work in over 65 years. (Ending Soon Sun, 13th Oct)
The Queen's Gallery
This major exhibition explores the life and legacy of the iconic designer Abram Games, focusing on his time as 'Official War Poster Artist' during the Second World War. (Ending Soon Tue, 15th Oct)
National Army Museum
This exhibition explores how innovative individuals, communities and organisations are radically re-inventing how we grow, distribute and experience food. (Ending Soon Sun, 20th Oct)
Victoria and Albert Museum
This exhibition celebrates music hall and variety entertainment throughout a time when Islington was London’s undisputed ‘Parish of Pleasure’! (Ending Soon Tue, 22nd Oct)
Islington Museum
Free
David Low - Censored
These are cartoons the Evening Standard felt were either too strong or in too bad taste to publish. (Ending Soon Fri, 25th Oct)
The Political Cartoon Gallery
Explore the ancient and modern contexts of one of the most important artefacts in the Petrie Museum: an ancient model of a ship-cart excavated from a tomb at the site of Gurob. (Ending Soon Sat, 26th Oct)
Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology
The world's most celebrated contemporary glass artist is back, showcasing his work against the stunning backdrop of Kew Gardens. (Ending Soon Sun, 27th Oct)
Kew Gardens
Discover the mesmerising paintings of Helene Schjerfbeck, one of Finland’s best kept secrets, in the UK’s first major exhibition of her work. (Ending Soon Sun, 27th Oct)
Royal Academy of Arts
Free
Secret Rivers
Discover the secrets of London's historic waterways and the art they have inspired. (Ending Soon Sun, 27th Oct)
Museum of London Docklands
This exhibition presents a global picture of Dickens, exploring the impact of his travels on his life and his writing, and it examines how Dickens has gone on to shape the lives of people around the globe. (Ending Soon Sun, 3rd Nov)
Charles Dickens Museum
This exhibition brings together works from the 17th century to the present day to illustrate how London’s ever-changing cityscape has inspired visiting and resident artists over four centuries. (Ending Soon Sun, 1st Dec)
Guildhall Art Gallery and Roman Amphitheater
This exhibition traces the history of the Thameslink route from 1866 through to the recent £7bn modernisation programme which has transformed the route and untangled the tracks. (Ending Soon Mon, 2nd Dec)
London Transport Museum
Highlights include self-driving cars, autonomous flying drones and smart underwater vehicles like the Autosub Long Range Boaty McBoatface. (Ending Soon Sat, 21st Dec)
Science Museum
The exhibition looks at Pope’s early life in Twickenham and the creation of his villa, garden and grotto. (Ending Soon Sun, 22nd Dec)
The Twickenham Museum
Free
Museum of the Moon
A huge floating "Moon" will fill a darkened room and it's oddly exciting to see. (Ending Soon Sun, 5th Jan)
Natural History Museum
£9
The Moon
To celebrate 50 years since NASA’s Apollo 11 mission landed the first humans on the Moon, the UK’s biggest exhibition dedicated to Earth’s nearest celestial neighbour. (Ending Soon Sun, 5th Jan)
National Maritime Museum
Discover the remarkable world of codebreaking, ciphers and secret communications in use by British and foreign governments. (Ending Soon Sat, 18th Jan)
Science Museum
Artists Anna Alcock, Hannah Ford, Miyuki Kasahara, Alke Schmidt and Sandie Sutton respond to this crisis with new work that draws on research into the causes of the decline of pollinators. (Ending Soon Sun, 26th Jan)
Vestry House Museum