A list of free exhibitions in London open now, and opening in London soon.

Displayed by how soon they close.

Exhibitions open now

An exhibition of photographs by Kevin Davies, capturing David Bowie over the course of a single day in 1992.
Open from Fri 1st Mar to Wed 20th Mar
Ends this month

Fitzrovia Chapel
W1T 3BF
2024-03-01
David Bowie - A London Day
Brought together again after five decades, a series of landscapes by the Scots-Irish artist William Crozier (1930-2011) are on display, showcasing why he became one of the leading artists of the post-war generation.
Open from Wed 14th Feb to Fri 22nd Mar
Ends this month

Piano Nobile
W11 4LW
2024-02-14
William Crozier: Nature into Abstraction
From 1970s activism to the current party scene, the exhibition displays five decades of Hackney life through a camera lens.
Open from Tue 13th Feb to Sat 23rd Mar
Ends this month

Hackney Museum
E8 1GQ
2024-02-13
Responsible for some of the most iconic editorial shoots and album artwork of the 1990s and 2000s, Rankin has photographed the biggest British bands
Open from Tue 12th Mar to Sun 24th Mar
Ends this month

Cromwell Place
SW7 2JE
2024-03-12
Rankin: Sound Off - Musicians 1990-23
This exhibition presents the stories of Londoners of African, Caribbean, Asian and Indigenous heritage who lived and worked in the city between 1560 and 1860 and are recorded in London’s archives.
Open from Wed 5th Apr 2023 to Wed 27th Mar
Ends this month

London Metropolitan Archives
EC1R 0HB
2023-04-05
Unforgotten Lives
This free exhibition showcases the work of the 12 emerging designers from across the UK who have been selected as the recipients of the Linbury Prize for Stage Design 2023.
Open from Mon 13th Nov 2023 to Sat 30th Mar
Ends this month

The National Theatre
SE1 9PX
2023-11-13
The Linbury Prize for Stage Design
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.
Open from Fri 6th Oct 2023 to Sun 31st Mar
Ends this month

National Army Museum
SW3 4HT
2023-10-06
Shakespeare and War
Showcasing prints and drawings from Genoa's golden age, this display spotlights an artistic powerhouse that rivalled Venice, Florence and Rome.
Open from Thu 5th Oct 2023 to Mon 1st Apr

British Museum
WC1B 3DG
2023-10-05
Superb line prints and drawings from Genoa 1500–1800
Known for her hyperrealistic style and bold colours, Titi’s works single out a series of objects against stark white backgrounds
Open from Sat 2nd Mar to Mon 1st Apr

Camden Open Air Gallery
NW1 8QR
2024-03-02
Titi Finlay - Things!
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.
Open from Thu 6th Apr 2023 to Fri 5th Apr

Barbican Centre
EC2Y 8DS
2023-04-06
Concrete and Clay - Archiving the Barbican
The exhibition features 18 female sculptors and 40 works of art, offering a diverse and thought-provoking exploration of contemporary female sculpture.
Open from Fri 8th Mar to Sat 6th Apr

The Garrison Chapel
SW1W 8BG
2024-03-08
Not unlike Christmas lights, there will be Ramadan Lights above Coventry Street next to Leicester Square for a few weeks.
Open from Thu 7th Mar to Fri 12th Apr

Coventry Street
W1D 7AG
2024-03-07
Ramadan Lights in the West End
Discover over 100 years of intrigue, deceit and real-life secret agents.
Open from Fri 29th Sep 2023 to Sun 14th Apr

Imperial War Museum
SE1 6HZ
2023-09-29
Spies, Lies and Deception
A monumental sculptural installation made of thousands of metal bottle tops and fragments.
Open from Tue 10th Oct 2023 to Sun 14th Apr

Tate Modern
SE1 9TG
2023-10-10
El Anatsui: Behind the Red Moon
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.
Open from Wed 20th Sep 2023 to Sun 21st Apr

Wallace Collection
W1U 3BN
2023-09-20
Turner and Bonington: Watercolours from the Wallace Collection
Experience Ainu culture as it exists today in this exploration of the contemporary lives of this indigenous people of northern Japan.
Open from Tue 2nd Jan to Sun 21st Apr

Japan House London
W8 5SA
2024-01-02
Ainu Stories: Contemporary Lives by the Saru River
This bold new exploration of glass in the UK brings together for the very first time rarely seen works from key UK collections, celebrating this remarkable material.
Open from Sat 27th Jan to Sun 21st Apr

Two Temple Place
WC2R 3BD
2024-01-27
The Glass Heart
This exhibition explores notions of beauty across time and cultures.
Open from Thu 26th Oct 2023 to Sun 28th Apr

Wellcome Collection
NW1 2BE
2023-10-26
The Cult of Beauty
A large scale new commission from Hong-Kong based artist Zheng Bo, transforming Somerset House’s courtyard into a bamboo garden.
Open from Thu 22nd Feb to Sun 28th Apr

Somerset House
WC2R 1LA
2024-02-22
Zheng Bo: Bamboo as Method
This exhibition finds conversations between various forms of abstraction, symbolism and figuration that were circulating and interacting in the visual culture of Brazil in the mid-20th century.
Open from Mon 26th Feb to Sun 5th May

Raven Row
E1 7LS
2024-02-26
Some May Work as Symbols: Art Made in Brazil, 1950s–70s
Bethlem Museum of the Mind showcases Alison Lapper’s (b.1965) work that explores her journey of grief since the untimely death of her son Parys.
Open from Wed 7th Feb to Sat 11th May

Bethlem Museum of the Mind
BR3 3BX
2024-02-07
Alison Lapper: Lost in Parys
How do you develop a vaccine quickly and effectively to combat a global pandemic?
Open from Wed 30th Nov 2022 to Sun 12th May

Science Museum
SW7 2DD
2022-11-30
Injecting Hope: The race for a COVID-19 vaccine
A small display of documents about Billingsgate Market in the Guildhall Art Gallery's Heritage room (lower basement).
Open from Sat 27th Jan to Thu 16th May

Guildhall Art Gallery and Roman Amphitheater
EC2V 5AE
2024-01-27
Billingsgate Market at the Heritage Gallery
A display exploring the body of literature about London by European writers from across the centuries.
Open from Fri 10th Nov 2023 to Mon 20th May

Bloomsbury Campus
WC1E 6BT
2023-11-10
Through photographs, possessions, interviews, maps and more, this exhibition explores the lives and stories of generations of UCL students.
Open from Fri 10th Nov 2023 to Mon 20th May

UCL Octagon Gallery
wc1e 6bt
2023-11-10
The museum exhibition features first-hand accounts of the horrors and moments of hope faced by doctors tackling the impact of the virus.
Open from Mon 25th Sep 2023 to Fri 24th May

Royal College of Physicians Museum
NW1 4LE
2023-09-25
An exhibition for the fans by the fans going some way to explain not just what 2Tone is but why and how we got there.
Open from Fri 12th Jan to Sat 25th May

Barbican Library
EC2Y 8DS
2024-01-12
From the Caribbean to Coventry - Plotting the Rise of Two Tone
This exhibition features personal stories, photographs and objects from from the 1950s to the present day.
Open from Sat 10th Feb to Sat 1st Jun

Hackney Museum
E8 1GQ
2024-02-10
Celebrating Hackney’s Adventure Playgrounds
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.
Open from Fri 20th Oct 2023 to Sun 2nd Jun

Gunnersbury Park and Museum
W5 4NH
2023-10-20
 Set to Stun: Designing & Filming Sci-Fi in West London
A display of gems collected in classical times -- including some recently recovered by the British Museum from an alleged theft.
Open from Thu 15th Feb to Sat 15th Jun

British Museum
WC1B 3DG
2024-02-15
Rediscovering gems
An exhibition of delicate and intimate paintings and drawings from Kenyan-born, London-based artist Zeinab Saleh.
Open from Fri 19th Jan to Sun 23rd Jun

Tate Britain
SW1P 4RG
2024-01-19
Art Now Zeinab Saleh
Robinson explores the ancient myth of Mithras through an immersive space, evocative of the initiation ceremonies thought to have been held in the Temple.
Open from Thu 1st Feb to Sat 29th Jun

London Mithraeum
EC4N 8AA
2024-02-01
Dream-Bridge-Omniglyph
The exhibition explores tea’s complex history and myriad of meanings – from its popularisation and globalisation connected to stories of imperialism and colonial violence.
Open from Sat 7th Oct 2023 to Sun 7th Jul

Horniman Museum
SE23 3PQ
2023-10-07
 茶, चाय, Tea (Chá, Chai, Tea)
This exhibition follows the lives of British soldiers in Germany over the past 75 years.
Open from Sun 22nd May 2022 to Wed 21st Aug

National Army Museum
SW3 4HT
2022-05-22
 Foe to Friend: The British Army in Germany since 1945
An exhibition of photos and artwork inspired by the brutalist appearance of the National Theatre.
Open from Fri 26th Jan to Sat 31st Aug

The National Theatre
SE1 9PX
2024-01-26
Abstractions: Studies from the National Theatre
The 14 works on display provide a snapshot of digital art practices from the 1960s to early 2000s.
Open from Sat 30th Dec 2023 to Sun 15th Sep

Victoria and Albert Museum
SW7 2RL
2023-12-30
Patric Prince: Digital Art Visionary
Loaned from Brighton Museum, this display showcases more than 300 years of popular British history.
Open from Sat 30th Dec 2023 to Sun 29th Sep

Victoria and Albert Museum
SW7 2RL
2023-12-30
Henry Willett's Collection of Popular Pottery
An exhibition about the brain – the most complex and least understood part of the body – and the journey to map its intricate connections.
Open from Sat 2nd Mar to Sat 7th Dec

The Francis Crick Institute
NW1 1AT
2024-03-02
Hello Brain!
Money and the way we use it has changed. This free exhibition responds directly to questions asked by the public about the future of money.
Open from Wed 28th Feb to Fri 29th Aug 2025

Bank of England Museum
EC2R 8AH
2024-02-28
The Future of Money

Exhibitions opening soon

For his first show at the gallery in London since 2016, Oehlen continues to explore the rich possibilities and the future of painting.
Open from Thu 21st Mar to Sat 11th May

Gagosian Gallery
W1K 3QD
2024-03-21
Albert Oehlen - New Paintings
During the week of the Chelsea Flower Show, loads of shops and streets around Chelsea and Belgravia become a free floral show all of their own.
Open from Wed 22nd May to Tue 28th May

Various locations
2024-05-22
Chelsea and Belgravia in Bloom
Mary Beale (1633-1699) was one of Britain’s first professional woman artists and is subject of this exhibition featuring 25 of her works from public and private collections, including some never seen before in public.
Open from Thu 25th Apr to Fri 19th Jul

Philip Mould & Company
SW1Y 5LU
2024-04-25
Fruit of Friendship: Portraits by Mary Beale
The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula, 1610, lent by the Intesa Sanpaolo Collection, will be displayed alongside another late work by the Italian artist from the National Gallery Collection, Salome receives the Head of John the Baptist, about 1609–10.
Open from Thu 18th Apr to Sun 21st Jul

National Gallery
WC2N 5DN
2024-04-18
The Last Caravaggio
Degas’s Miss La La at the Cirque Fernando takes centre stage in this exhibition that sheds light on this work with newly discovered information about the painting and its sitter.
Open from Thu 6th Jun to Sun 1st Sep

National Gallery
WC2N 5DN
2024-06-06
Discover Degas & Miss La La
The exhibition is a joyful exploration of the body, drawing on the artist’s experience of becoming disabled as a child.
Open from Thu 21st Mar to Sun 12th Jan 2025

Wellcome Collection
NW1 2BE
2024-03-21
Jason and the Adventure of 254
The National Gallery celebrates the first public display in a decade, following conservation, of a masterpiece of Italian Mannerism, Parmigianino’s Madonna and Child with Saints
Open from Thu 5th Dec to Sun 9th Mar 2025

National Gallery
WC2N 5DN
2024-12-05
Parmigianino: The Vision of Saint Jerome