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: Friday, 31st May 2024?
Displayed in date order by how soon they close.
£13
Zanele Muholi
Tate Modern presents the first major UK survey of visual activist Zanele Muholi. (Ending Soon Mon, 31st May)
Tate Modern
British artist Antony Cairns continues his exploration of the global metropolis in a new exhibition; his first UK solo exhibition for over four years. (Ending Soon Fri, 4th Jun)
Webber Gallery
Back in the future of 1995, the teen techno-thriller Hackers burst onto cinema screens with its cyber phreak aesthetics, video game visuals and mind-bending techno soundtrack. (Ending Soon Sat, 5th Jun)
The Horse Hospital
£12
Shara Hughes
The exhibition brings together a group of new site specific paintings and works on paper by the New York-based artist (Ending Soon Sat, 5th Jun)
Garden Museum
The Royal Society of Sculptors is showcasing the work of Naomi Blake FRBS with an outdoor exhibition on the sculpture terrace. (Ending Soon Sun, 6th Jun)
Royal Society of Sculptors
A herd of 50 handcrafted life-size elephants are roaming around Chelsea. (Ending Soon Sun, 6th Jun)
Duke of York Square
The winning images from the 2020 Travel Photographer of the Year awards are on display in an outdoor exhibition. (Ending Soon Thu, 10th Jun)
Coal Drops Yard
This is an opportunity to not only stand in front of the painting but immerse yourself in its world and the artistry that built it. (Ending Soon Sun, 13th Jun)
National Gallery
An open-air exhibition documenting the overland journey photographer Christopher Wilton-Steer undertook in 2019 following the historic trade route. (Ending Soon Wed, 16th Jun)
Granary Square
An exhibition around the roof garden above the Elizabeth line station of large geometric coloured shapes. (Ending Soon Sat, 19th Jun)
Crossrail Place Roof Garden
Zoe Zenghelis’ paintings are inspired by metropolitan structure, landform, and abstract tectonics. (Ending Soon Wed, 30th Jun)
Architectural Association
This monumental sculpture by Luke Jerram amazes audiences as it rotates slowly while suspended in mid-air, an exact scale replica of Earth made using NASA imagery. (Ending Soon Thu, 1st Jul)
Old Royal Naval College
This exhibition showcases the innovative work of Japanese textile designer Sudō Reiko, who is renowned for pushing boundaries of textile production and championing new methods of sustainable manufacturing. (Ending Soon Sun, 11th Jul)
Japan House
A new outdoor exhibition, Gunnersbury Park Museum celebrates the life and work of Ealing Studios stills photographer Roy Gough. (Ending Soon Sun, 11th Jul)
Gunnersbury Park Museum
Works from the period of the two artists’ friendship will be shown side by side for the first time, along with unseen materials from Beard’s archives including letters and photographs. (Ending Soon Fri, 16th Jul)
Ordovas
A collection of limited edition prints and original drawings including maps that salute London’s Theatres, Lost Rivers and bustling London Squares. (Ending Soon Sat, 31st Jul)
St Martin-in-the-Fields
The richly decorated Victorian Leadenhall Market has been filled with neon lighting from Gods Own Junkyard. (Ending Soon Sat, 31st Jul)
Leadenhall Market
The fifty-sixth Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition will immerse you in the breathtaking diversity of the natural world. (Ending Soon Sun, 1st Aug)
Natural History Museum
An annual exhibition showcasing the world's greatest space photography. (Ending Soon Sun, 8th Aug)
Royal Observatory Greenwich
This display weaves together a rich tapestry of artistic expression from artists born in, or connected to, countries from Iran to Morocco. (Ending Soon Sun, 15th Aug)
The British Museum
This display marks the launch of Network Rail’s new customised typeface, Rail Alphabet 2, designed by her in close collaboration with Henrik Kubel. (Ending Soon Tue, 17th Aug)
The Design Museum
An exhibition celebrating French artist Jean Dubuffet (1901-1985), one of the most singular and provocative voices in postwar modern art. (Ending Soon Sun, 22nd Aug)
Barbican Centre
Discover the murder that shook the Middle Ages in this dramatic exhibition about the life, death and legacy of Thomas Becket. (Ending Soon Sun, 22nd Aug)
The British Museum
This is a rare opportunity to see one of Poland’s most loved works of art. (Ending Soon Mon, 30th Aug)
National Gallery
Outdoor art exhibition by Malwawi-born artist Samson Kambalu, who has been creating flags throughout lockdown that explore ideas of national and individual sovereignty and links to emancipatory movements such as Pan-Africanism. (Ending Soon Sun, 5th Sep)
Southbank Centre
A collection of work exploring artists’ responses to the Battle of Britain and the Blitz. (Ending Soon Sun, 12th Sep)
RAF Museum
This landmark exhibition brings together major works by Turner from Tate and other collections, including The Fighting Temeraire 1839 and Rail, Steam and Speed 1844. (Ending Soon Sun, 12th Sep)
Tate Britain
Embrace the wonderfully weird world of plant biodiversity through newly commissioned interactive art installations using music, sound and colour. (Ending Soon Sun, 19th Sep)
Kew Gardens
An exhibition about the 20th century’s most influential floral decorator, Constance Spry. (Ending Soon Sun, 26th Sep)
Garden Museum
£17.50
Naturally Brilliant Colour
Experience colour like never before in an exhibition that celebrates the spectacular shades of the natural world. (Ending Soon Sun, 26th Sep)
Kew Gardens
Discover the story of Ai-Da, the world’s first convincing humanoid robot capable of creating artworks. (Ending Soon Wed, 29th Sep)
The Design Museum
Original artworks and illustrations from his booklets, inspired by the art in the Painted Hall, will be on display. (Ending Soon Thu, 30th Sep)
Old Royal Naval College
Free
Making Paradise
An exhibition exploring the concept of Eden through Art & Islamic Garden Design (Ending Soon Thu, 30th Sep)
The Aga Khan Centre
Free
Falling Birds
A series of X-ray photographs and poetic texts highlighting extinction and the alarming decline in bird species around the world. (Ending Soon Sun, 10th Oct)
Horniman Museum
This exhibition explores the true story of Rome's fifth emperor informed by new research and archaeological evidence from the time, challenging the biased historical accounts written after Nero’s death that have shaped his legacy. (Ending Soon Sun, 24th Oct)
The British Museum
Step up and discover the footwear phenomenon that has challenged performance design, inspired subcultures and shaken the world of fashion. (Ending Soon Sun, 24th Oct)
The Design Museum
Come face-to-face with the kings and queens who have shaped British history for over 500 years (Ending Soon Sun, 31st Oct)
National Maritime Museum
A new photographic art display exploring contemporary relationships with spiritualism, reality and surrealism, through a Black British lens. (Ending Soon Sun, 7th Nov)
Horniman Museum
Free
Beuys’ Acorns
In response to the climate emergency, artists Ackroyd & Harvey have installed Beuys’ Acorns, a group of 100 oak trees, on Tate Modern’s South Terrace (Ending Soon Sun, 14th Nov)
Tate Modern
£24.50
The Art of Banksy
The Art of Banksy holds the world’s largest collection of privately owned Banksy art. (Ending Soon Sun, 21st Nov)
Belgo
Discover where the real world and the Wizarding World intertwine. (Ending Soon Thu, 25th Nov)
Natural History Museum
This display reflects on the role of humour in debates around identity, empire and power over the past two hundred years. (Ending Soon Thu, 25th Nov)
Victoria and Albert Museum
This display of artworks and manuscripts explores the life and interests of Joseph Banks (1743-1820) through some of his extraordinary collections. (Ending Soon Thu, 25th Nov)
Natural History Museum
An installation exploring two important social questions: who are our buildings and shared spaces for and how do they affect us? (Ending Soon Thu, 23rd Dec)
Barbican Centre
An exhibition about a dentist and Freemason noted for his philanthropy. (Ending Soon Fri, 24th Dec)
Museum of Freemasonry
An outdoor exhibition marking the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the seat of Poland’s diplomatic post in London at 47 Portland Place. (Ending Soon Fri, 31st Dec)
Embassy of the Republic of Poland
Sixty-five paintings that usually hang in the Picture Gallery at Buckingham Palace and are widely acknowledged to be among the highlights of the Royal Collection have been brought together in a gallery exhibition for the first time. (Ending Soon Fri, 31st Dec)
The Queen's Gallery