The Best Exhibitions To See In London In 2023
From major retrospectives of some of the art world’s most famous names to celebrations of lesser-known but equally impactful figures, these are the exhibitions not to miss in London this year
Diva
A suitably iconic celebration of the power and influence of the world’s most legendary performers comes to the V&A this summer. Exploring the role of ‘diva’ on culture and society, the exhibition – supported by NET-A-PORTER – will showcase the extraordinary stories of visionary women who have left a mark on history through their exceptional talents and performances. It will examine how the concept of ‘diva’ has been perceived (both embraced and subverted) over time across the realms of opera, stage, popular music and film.
Diva opens June 24 at V&A South Kensington
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David Hockney: Bigger & Closer
David Hockney takes audiences on a deeply personal journey through six decades of his work in this exhibition of recognizable and lesser-known pieces. Using large-scale projection and a phenomenal sound system, this is a vivid and vast insight into the world as Hockney sees it.
David Hockney: Bigger & Closer is on until October 1 at the Lightroom
Alice Neel: Hot Off The Griddle
A long-deserved, expansive retrospective for the late Alice Neel (1900-1984) – the largest exhibition of the American artist to date in the UK – brings her vivid, figurative portraits to the Barbican. Depicting people often marginalized in 20th-century New York, Neel, who described herself as a “collector of souls”, is now recognized as an eminent portrayer of the era’s social and political context.
Alice Neel: Hot Off The Griddle is on until May 21 at the Barbican
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Beyond The Streets London
More than 100 international artists are featured in the most comprehensive graffiti and street-art exhibition to ever open in the UK, taking three floors of the Saatchi Gallery. Showcasing the impact of this art scene across the world, it examines the need for public self-expression and explores key moments and cultural figures that have inspired – and been inspired by – the street-art movement.
Beyond The Streets London is on until May 9 at the Saatchi Gallery
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Ai Weiwei: Making Sense
A major exhibition developed in collaboration with Ai Weiwei – the first to zone in on his work as a commentary on design – will reflect his core themes of art and activism, value and humanity. It is Weiwei’s exploration of such concepts, and their interconnection, that has made him one of the most important artists working today. The curation combines his famous pieces alongside objects that are being displayed for the very first time.
Ai Weiwei: Making Sense is on until July 30 at the Design Museum
Souls Grown Deep Like the Rivers: Black Artists from the American South
A presentation of masterpieces by Black artists from the Southeastern United States, this exhibition articulates horrors of America’s recent past and present – including enslavement, segregation and institutionalized racism – through mediums of sculpture, paintings, drawings and quilts, spanning from the mid-20th century to today.
Souls Grown Deep Like the Rivers is on until June 18 at the Royal Academy of Arts
Marina Abramović
The first-ever UK exhibition to showcase the life’s work of the pioneering performance artist will include live re-performances of some of her most iconic works. Abramović has closely collaborated on the curation, which spans five decades, inviting visitors to encounter for themselves the physical intensity for which her work has become known.
Marina Abramović opens September 23 at the Royal Academy of Arts
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Women in Revolt!
A significant survey of works by more than 100 female artists working in the UK from 1970 to 1990 will consider the themes of art, activism and the British Women’s Liberation Movement during an era of extreme social, economic and political change. Bringing these artists into the mainstream narrative that they were often excluded from at the time, it will examine their impact on British culture and subsequent generations of artists.
Women in Revolt! opens November 8 at Tate Britain
Donatello: Sculpting the Renaissance
A showcase of some of the Renaissance master’s most phenomenal sculptures comes to the V&A in the UK’s first major retrospective of his exceptional and discipline-defining talents. Look at these historic pieces through a fresh lens and with new perspectives of his palpable influence on the art world.
Donatello: Sculpting the Renaissance is on until June 11 at V&A South Kensington
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