Welcome to the IanVisits alternative guide to London.
Lectures, talks, heritage events, organised walks and other random geeky miscellany.
Displayed in date order by how soon they close.
The exhibition explores the artist’s work over the last six decades through his intimate portraits of five sitters. (Ending Soon Sun, 21st Jan)
National Portrait Gallery
£20
Frans Hals
This exhibition, the first major retrospective of Hals in more than thirty years, means a new generation can discover why he deserves his place as one of the greatest painters in Western art. (Ending Soon Sun, 21st Jan)
National Gallery
Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Boundless will take a retrospective look at the career and achievements of artistic collaborators and life partners Christo and Jeanne-Claude. (Ending Soon Mon, 22nd Jan)
Saatchi Gallery
£31.50
Disney 100 Exhibition
The exhibition includes ten themed galleries with classics from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to contemporary releases such as Encanto, including the latest members of the Disney family—Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel. (Ending Soon Mon, 22nd Jan)
ExCeL London
The exhibition will feature 29 remarkable female sculptors, celebrating their contributions to the world of art from the 1960s to now. (Ending Soon Mon, 22nd Jan)
Saatchi Gallery
A photographic perspective on young adults living 'through' the time of Corona. (Ending Soon Mon, 22nd Jan)
Leica Gallery
A display celebrating the 400th anniversary of the publication of William Shakespeare’s First Folio. (Ending Soon Thu, 25th Jan)
Guildhall Art Gallery and Roman Amphitheater
Free
Slavery & the Bank
This exhibition explores the history of transatlantic slavery through its connections with the Bank of England and the wider City of London. (Ending Soon Fri, 26th Jan)
Bank of England Museum
For their eighth edition, the illuminated trail will take you on a journey through 12 spectacular installations, as well as their ever-popular permanent light artworks. (Ending Soon Sat, 27th Jan)
Canary Wharf estate
This exhibition explores the dynamic relationship between contemporary painting and photography. (Ending Soon Sun, 28th Jan)
Tate Modern
This display of prints by American artist Ed Ruscha focuses on his prevailing interest in the physical world around him. (Ending Soon Sun, 28th Jan)
British Museum
Visit the Chelsea Physic Garden during a celebration of the earliest spring blooms, the coming of warmer weather and lighter days. (Ending Soon Sun, 28th Jan)
Chelsea Physic Garden
Revel in the beauty of nature at this display of works by Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues – one of the most gifted botanical artists of his age. (Ending Soon Sun, 28th Jan)
British Museum
Exhibition of icons at Southwark Cathedral. Works by Finnish Traditional Byzantine Iconographer Hanna-Leena Ward. (Ending Soon Tue, 30th Jan)
Southwark Cathedral
£15
Coalescence
The six-metre diameter artwork is made from over 2,500 pieces of coal with a combined weight of over half a tonne – the amount of coal consumed by a single 200W light bulb in a year. (Ending Soon Sun, 4th Feb)
Old Royal Naval College
Experience the exceptional craftmanship and creativity behind The Crown with a special exhibition of the sets, costumes and props. (Ending Soon Mon, 5th Feb)
Bonhams
£12
Burma to Myanmar
From influential superpower to repressive regime, Myanmar – also known as Burma – has seen dramatic fluctuations in fortune over the past 1,500 years. (Ending Soon Sun, 11th Feb)
British Museum
Free
Genetic Automata
This is an ongoing body of video works by artists Larry Achiampong and David Blandy, exploring race and identity in an age of avatars, videogames and DNA ancestry. (Ending Soon Sun, 11th Feb)
Wellcome Collection
Poet, artist and filmmaker Julianknxx explores themes of inheritance, loss and belonging as he crosses the boundaries between written word, music and visual art. (Ending Soon Sun, 11th Feb)
Barbican Arts Centre
This display presents an outstanding group of around twenty Venetian drawings from The Courtauld’s collection. (Ending Soon Sun, 11th Feb)
Courtauld Institute of Art
This exhibition will be one of the most wide-ranging surveys of contemporary fashion culture ever staged in the UK. (Ending Soon Sun, 11th Feb)
The Design Museum
A journey through more than 200 of the most beautiful, idiosyncratic, and interesting places on Earth – all seemingly plucked from the whimsical world of Wes Anderson. (Ending Soon Sat, 17th Feb)
81-85 Old Brompton Road
Explore the design and history of the Royal Festival Hall foyers, and discover the people behind them, in this free Archive Studio exhibition. (Ending Soon Sat, 17th Feb)
Royal Festival Hall
Free
Zach Blas: CULTUS
An immersive exploration of AI Gods, spirituality, and Silicon Valley’s techno-religion. (Ending Soon Sat, 17th Feb)
arebyte Gallery
Whether subverting, inverting, celebrating or exploding – this intriguing new show explores the history of artists taking on the medium of books. (Ending Soon Sun, 18th Feb)
British Museum
£10
Reworking Manet
An exhibition showcasing the creativity and imagination of young people responding to Édouard Manet’s A Bar at the Folies-Bergère (1882). (Ending Soon Sun, 18th Feb)
Courtauld Institute of Art
Journey through the enchanting, mysterious and sometimes monstrous makings of fantasy. (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Feb)
British Library
This exhibition will present the landscape and nature paintings and sculptures of Frank Walter. (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Feb)
Garden Museum
From trials to triumphs, explore Malorie Blackman's impact on the world of children's literature. (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Feb)
British Library
£20
Philip Guston
One of the 20th century’s most captivating painters responds to a world in turmoil (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Feb)
Tate Modern
£16.50
Sara Shamma
Dulwich Picture Gallery presents a new body of work by the renowned artist Sara Shamma. (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Feb)
Dulwich Picture Gallery
This Prize is one of the most important and anticipated photography competitions in the world and a showcase for both celebrated professionals and talented amateurs. (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Feb)
National Portrait Gallery
A number of newly commissioned works and collaborations that explore the elements that structure our perception of reality and challenge the human instinct of finding order and meaning in our surroundings. (Ending Soon Sun, 25th Feb)
180 Studios
How can we design our homes to respond to the climate emergency? Discover how architects are reimagining wood, stone and straw to design homes fit for the future. (Ending Soon Thu, 29th Feb)
The Design Museum
This exhibition explores the history of this iconic book through its reproductions as facsimiles, how the text was repackaged and republished and how the book became prized by collectors. (Ending Soon Thu, 29th Feb)
Senate House Library
For the first time in 250 years, this exhibition reunites the pastel masterpiece by Swiss artist Jean-Etienne Liotard, painted in Lyon in 1754, with the painted version in oil he completed in London almost 20 years later. (Ending Soon Sun, 3rd Mar)
National Gallery
The forgotten story of the Indian Army camps at Hampton Court Palace (Ending Soon Sun, 3rd Mar)
Hampton Court Palace
Free
The Way of All Flesh
The Way of All Flesh beckons visitors to contemplate the ephemeral nature of existence, to gaze into the mirror of mortality, and to recognise the universal embrace of life’s impermanence. (Ending Soon Sun, 3rd Mar)
Saatchi Gallery
Free
Everyday Monuments
Everyday Monuments showcases works by three emerging UK artists – Catriona Robertson, Jacob Talkowski and Alaric Hammond. (Ending Soon Sun, 10th Mar)
Saatchi Gallery
The first UK exhibition dedicated to the work of French couturière, Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel, charting the establishment of the House of CHANEL and the evolution of her iconic design style. (Ending Soon Sun, 10th Mar)
Victoria and Albert Museum
An exhibition of 70 works on paper by leading Impressionist and Post-Impressionist artists. (Ending Soon Sun, 10th Mar)
Royal Academy of Arts
Discover an overlooked Renaissance great in the first-ever exhibition dedicated to Francesco Pesellino (c.1422–1457). (Ending Soon Sun, 10th Mar)
National Gallery
This exhibition displays her vivid and detailed illustrations, as well as the wooden ‘Pomona’ toys she created with fellow artist and suffragette campaigner Louise Jacobs. (Ending Soon Sun, 24th Mar)
Heath Robinson Museum
Showcasing prints and drawings from Genoa's golden age, this display spotlights an artistic powerhouse that rivalled Venice, Florence and Rome. (Ending Soon Mon, 1st Apr)
British Museum
This free installation invites visitors to orient themselves in the buildings and their complex, fascinating histories in an exciting new display at the heart of the Barbican’s Foyers. (Ending Soon Fri, 5th Apr)
Barbican Centre
The first of its kind, this exhibition is a wide-ranging exploration of feminist art by over 100 women artists working in the UK. (Ending Soon Sun, 7th Apr)
Tate Britain
£20
DIVA
Expect an explosion of over the top fashions at the V&A Museum this summer, as it brings together a collection of outfits worn by celebrities under the title of "divas". (Ending Soon Sun, 7th Apr)
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Devil is in the Detail will display one of the most important series of woodcuts in Albrecht Dürer’s career, the Great Passion, which is rarely seen in its complete set, as well as several other key works from the era. (Ending Soon Wed, 10th Apr)
Strawberry Hill
An exhibition to mark the film's 30th anniversary. (Ending Soon Sun, 14th Apr)
Cartoon Museum
£27.40
Delight
A multimedia exhibition that combines visuals, sound, and augmented reality to animate the cultural heritage and spirit of South Korea's Seoul. (Ending Soon Sun, 14th Apr)
Borough Yards
A monumental sculptural installation made of thousands of metal bottle tops and fragments. (Ending Soon Sun, 14th Apr)
Tate Modern
Discover over 100 years of intrigue, deceit and real-life secret agents. (Ending Soon Sun, 14th Apr)
Imperial War Museum
Experience Ainu culture as it exists today in this exploration of the contemporary lives of this indigenous people of northern Japan. (Ending Soon Sun, 21st Apr)
Japan House London
The exhibitions explore one of the great - and most entertaining - literary friendships, tracing the shared work, travels, confidences and, above all, the bond of friendship between two men whose books remain loved the world over. (Ending Soon Sun, 21st Apr)
Charles Dickens Museum
This free display brings together ten works by the two artists: with four views of Yorkshire by Turner and five scenes of Normandy and Venice by Bonington. (Ending Soon Sun, 21st Apr)
Wallace Collection
Free
The Cult of Beauty
This exhibition explores notions of beauty across time and cultures. (Ending Soon Sun, 28th Apr)
Wellcome Collection
Explore how music shapes our lives in this interactive exhibition. (Ending Soon Mon, 6th May)
Science Museum
How do you develop a vaccine quickly and effectively to combat a global pandemic? (Ending Soon Sun, 12th May)
Science Museum
This exhibition showcases the difference between refillable, returnable (prefill) and repurposed product packaging of the past, present, and future. (Ends on Wed, 15th May)
Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising
Through photographs, possessions, interviews, maps and more, this exhibition explores the lives and stories of generations of UCL students. (Ends on Mon, 20th May)
UCL Octagon Gallery
A display exploring the body of literature about London by European writers from across the centuries. (Ends on Mon, 20th May)
Bloomsbury Campus
Using textiles, fibre and thread, 50 international artists challenge power structures and reimagine the world in this major group exhibition. (Ends on Sun, 26th May)
Barbican Arts Centre
Celebrate the centenary of the publication of Freud’s famous work The Ego and the Id with an interactive mini-exhibition exploring visual metaphors behind the id, ego and superego. (Ends on Fri, 31st May)
Freud Museum
An exhibition about the west London hive of workshops and design studios that fed into some of the country’s most iconic Sci-Fi films and TV shows. (Ends on Sun, 2nd Jun)
Gunnersbury Park and Museum
£18
Skateboard
The first major UK exhibition to map the design evolution of the skateboard from the 1950s to today – a story of design, daring and disobedience. (Ends on Sun, 2nd Jun)
The Design Museum
Free
Art Now Zeinab Saleh
An exhibition of delicate and intimate paintings and drawings from Kenyan-born, London-based artist Zeinab Saleh. (Ends on Sun, 23rd Jun)
Tate Britain
A forest rodeo, a hidden stargazer and a mason bee at work are just a few of the awe-inspiring images featured in the 59th Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. (Ends on Sun, 30th Jun)
Natural History Museum
The exhibition explores tea’s complex history and myriad of meanings – from its popularisation and globalisation connected to stories of imperialism and colonial violence. (Ends on Sun, 7th Jul)
Horniman Museum
For the first time, this exhibition will uncover the major contribution of Jewish designers in making London an iconic fashion city. (Ends on Sun, 7th Jul)
Museum of London Docklands
Through personal letters, photographs, sculptures, books and marginalia, Freud and Latin America will investigate the roots of psychoanalysis in the region. (Ends on Sun, 14th Jul)
Freud Museum
From Hokusai to Pokémon, Studio Ghibli, robots and beyond, the exhibition takes young visitors on an atmospheric and playful journey revealing the influence of folklore on Japan’s art and design. (Ends on Sun, 11th Aug)
Young V&A
This exhibition follows the lives of British soldiers in Germany over the past 75 years. (Ends on Wed, 21st Aug)
National Army Museum
You can spot your postie by their brightly coloured get-up, but what’s the history of their uniform and how has it changed? (Ends on Sun, 1st Sep)
The Postal Museum
Free
Shakespeare and War
This exhibition explores some of the ways in which Shakespeare has shaped how we think about soldiers and the Army, and how we imagine war and its consequences today. (Ends on Sun, 1st Sep)
National Army Museum
The 14 works on display provide a snapshot of digital art practices from the 1960s to early 2000s. (Ends on Sun, 15th Sep)
Victoria and Albert Museum
Loaned from Brighton Museum, this display showcases more than 300 years of popular British history. (Ends on Sun, 29th Sep)
Victoria and Albert Museum
