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An Art Lover’s Guide to London
Art is everywhere you look in London – whether you’re in a gallery or just walking down the street. It is therefore no surprise that it is known as one of the most inspirational places in the world for artists.
We’ve pulled together a list of the must-visit places in London for art lovers. Let Caledonian Sleeper take you on a trip of a night-time to find some inspiration in London.
The Tate Modern includes a vast collection of modern and contemporary artworks. It is one of four Tate venues in the UK, including Tate Britain which first opened to the public in 1897 with one site displaying a small number of British artworks. Tate now hosts nearly 70,000 British and international modern and contemporary artworks across four sites – two in London, one in Liverpool and one in St Ives.
The National Portrait Gallery is an art gallery holding the most extensive collection of portraits in the world, from the 16th Century through to present day.
Including the portraits on display, the National Portrait Gallery regularly holds events including poetry readings, drop-in drawings and screenings of films.
The National Gallery is home to over 2,300 works. It features some of the world’s most famous art, including Van Gogh’s Sunflowers. In the centre of London, it is one of the most visited art museums in the world.
The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre hosting an art gallery, concert venue, theatre, library, exhibitions and three restaurants.
Current exhibitions include Trever Paglen: From ‘Apple’ to ‘Anomaly’ and Into the Night: Cabarets & Clubs in Modern Art. The venue also holds talks and workshops from artists.
The Saatchi Gallery presents artworks by promising young artists or international artists whose work is largely unseen in the UK. With over 1.5million visitors per year, the gallery showcases contemporary art, holds exhibitions, and has a restaurant, bar and café.
The Victoria & Albert is the world’s leading museum of art and design. It was first opened in 1852 as a Museum of Manufactures, and over the years has built its collections of art and design including over 2.3 million objects spanning over 5,000 years of human creativity.
The V&A holds some of the greatest collections in a variety of mediums including architecture, fashion, photography, sculpture, theatre and more.
Current exhibitions include Mary Quant, Tim Walker: Wonderful Things and Cars: Accelerating The Modern World.
Street Art
London is renowned for one of the most impressive street art scenes , with eye catching pieces popping up across the city on a daily basis. While it can be found in various sites across the city, the places where you’re most likely to see some street art include Brick Lane and Shoreditch.
One of the most famous artists, who raised the popularity of street art, is Banksy. Anonymous, his distinctive artwork has appeared across London for more than a decade.
The Leake Street tunnel in Lambeth was created in 2008 for the Cans Festival, organised by Banksy. The 300m tunnel features artwork from a range of anonymous artists – and due to the nature of the art, it is constantly changing.
The Seven Noses of Soho by Rick Buckley are plaster copies of the artist’s nose situated on buildings in Soho. Then, head along to Shoreditch to find street art wherever you go, particularly on Fashion Street, Brick Lane, and Shoreditch High Street.
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