April 23, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

V&A East Museum Review: Opening Day First Look 2026

V&A East Museum Review: Opening Day First Look

Last updated: 20 April 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

Cool Factor

★★★★★

5 out of 5 · Ice cold

Our V&A East Museum review comes straight from opening day, Saturday 18 April 2026. And we came away grinning. London does not get a brand new major museum very often. So when this one arrived in Stratford, we cleared the diary and went.

A decade in the making, this is the V&A's newest outpost. Crucially, it is the final piece of the East Bank cultural district. And it lands with genuine ambition. Here are our honest first impressions of the building, the free galleries, the ticketed opening show and the cafe.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Exhibitions, London, Reviews

Tags: Art Exhibitions, Black British music, London museums, O'Donnell + Tuomey, Olympic Park, reviews, Stratford, The Music is Black, V&A East, V&A East Museum, Why We Make

April 10, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Chiharu Shiota & Yin Xiuzhen Hayward Gallery Review 2026 – Worth It?

Last updated: 10 April 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

Our Chiharu Shiota Hayward review covers two concurrent exhibitions at the Hayward Gallery on London's Southbank: Threads of Life and Yin Xiuzhen's Heart to Heart. For £19 you get entry to both shows, and honestly, that felt like a steal. One of these exhibitions left us speechless. The other left us a little lukewarm. Together, they make for a genuinely memorable afternoon.

Cool Factor: Chiharu Shiota — 5/5 | Yin Xiuzhen — 3/5

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Artists, Arts & Culture, Reviews

Tags: art review, Chiharu Shiota, Contemporary art, Hayward Gallery, Heart to Heart, immersive art, London exhibitions, Southbank Centre, Threads of Life, Yin Xiuzhen

April 7, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Veronica Ryan Whitechapel Gallery Review 2026 – Multiple Conversations

Last updated: 11 April 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

Cool Factor

★★☆☆☆

2 out of 5

Two weeks ago I walked out of Hurvin Anderson's show at Tate Britain buzzing. It was focused, beautifully paced, and one of the best things I have seen in London this year. Then I paid £16.50 to see Veronica Ryan: Multiple Conversations at Whitechapel Gallery. I walked out feeling flat. Ryan is a Turner Prize winner with four decades of serious, compelling work behind her. So what went wrong? In short, the Veronica Ryan Whitechapel survey tries to say everything at once and ends up saying very little clearly. Here is why.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Artists, Arts & Culture, Reviews

Tags: art reviews, London exhibitions, reviews, Turner Prize, Veronica Ryan, Whitechapel Gallery

April 6, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Hurvin Anderson at Tate Britain Review – A Landmark Exhibition

Last updated: 6 April 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

Cool Factor: 5/5

The Hurvin Anderson Tate Britain exhibition is one of the most rewarding shows to open in London in years. Bringing together more than 80 paintings that span three decades of work, this major retrospective is a proper feast for the eyes. From lush Caribbean landscapes to intimate barbershop interiors, Anderson's colour-drenched canvases pull you in and refuse to let go. It runs until 23 August 2026, and if you only see one exhibition this year, make it this one.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Guides, London, Reviews

Tags: barbershop series, British painting, Caribbean art, Contemporary art, Exhibition review, Hurvin Anderson, Tate Britain

March 31, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Tracey Emin: A Second Life at Tate Modern Review (2026)

Last updated: 31 March 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

Cool Factor: 4/5

This Tracey Emin Tate review covers A Second Life, the largest ever survey of Dame Tracey Emin's work now showing at Tate Modern until 31 August 2026. Spanning over 100 works across 40 years, it is ambitious, deeply personal and, at times, genuinely difficult to look at. It is also one of the best exhibitions in London right now. The textile works alone justify the £20 ticket, and seeing My Bed in person still hits differently after all these years. However, the sheer pulling power of Emin's name means crowds can make the experience feel more like rush hour than a gallery visit.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Arts & Culture, Reviews

Tags: Art Exhibitions, arts and culture, Contemporary art, London exhibitions, reviews, Tate Modern, Tracey Emin, YBA

March 23, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Conceptual Art and Christine Kozlov at Raven Row Review

Last updated: 22 March 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

Cool Factor: 3/5

The Christine Kozlov Raven Row exhibition is a sprawling deep dive into the work and world of one of conceptual art's most overlooked figures. Housed in the gorgeous 18th-century rooms of Raven Row gallery in Spitalfields, Conceptual Art and Christine Kozlov brings together an expansive collection of Kozlov's output alongside works by her peers, including On Kawara, Lawrence Weiner, Joseph Kosuth, and Art & Language. It's free, it's ambitious, and it's open until 26 April 2026. But does it hold together as a show? Our honest verdict below.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Artists, Arts & Culture, Reviews

Tags: Art & Language, art review, Christine Kozlov, conceptual art, free London gallery, Lawrence Weiner, London exhibitions, On Kawara, Raven Row, Spitalfields

March 22, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

William Nicholson at Pallant House Gallery Review

Last updated: 21 March 2026

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

The William Nicholson exhibition at Pallant House Gallery in Chichester is the first major survey of this extraordinary painter in more than 20 years. Spanning his entire career, from bold graphic posters to luminous still lifes and tender portraits, it makes a compelling case for Nicholson as one of Modern British art's most underrated figures. A friend who studied at the Royal College of Art tipped us off, and they were right. This is a show that rewards close looking, and Chichester itself makes for a brilliant day out.

Cool Factor: 4/5 Stone cold

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Artists, Arts & Culture, Reviews, Travel lover

Tags: art exhibitions UK, British art, Chichester, days out Sussex, Exhibition review, Modern British art, Pallant House Gallery, still life, William Nicholson

March 2, 2026 — Comments are off for this post.

Rose Wylie at the Royal Academy Review: A Look at the London Exhibition

By Tristan · Arts, exhibitions and creative culture

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

The Rose Wylie Royal Academy exhibition places one of Britain’s most distinctive painters within the formal context of Burlington House. Rather than framing Wylie as an outsider voice, the exhibition situates her practice within a lineage of British painting that values scale, gesture and visual directness. The result is not a retrospective spectacle but a measured presentation that clarifies the structural intelligence beneath her deliberately awkward surface language.

As with other focused RA exhibitions, the strength of the show lies in pacing. The galleries unfold in a steady sequence, allowing Wylie’s visual vocabulary to accumulate gradually.

Published by Tristan in Art Lovers, Artists, Reviews, Travel lover

Tags: Art editions, Burlington House, Contemporary art, Exhibition review, London exhibitions, Painting, RA London, RA shop, Rose Wylie, Royal Academy

December 6, 2025 — Comments are off for this post.

Howard Hodgkin at Pitzhanger Manor Review: A Detailed Look at the London Exhibition

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

This article contains affiliate or referral links. If you click through and sign up I may earn a commission or referral bonus at no extra cost to you. It does not affect my editorial view.

The Howard Hodgkin Pitzhanger review has already attracted significant interest from London art audiences, and it is clear why. This exhibition, set within the refined Georgian architecture of Pitzhanger Manor, offers a particularly clear reading of Hodgkin’s distinctive approach to colour, memory and emotional temperature. Rather than functioning simply as a showcase of major works, the show uses the character of the building itself to shape a more intimate encounter with Hodgkin’s practice.

Where large retrospectives often expand outward, this exhibition tightens the focus. Viewers move through a sequence of carefully paced rooms, each one revealing a different aspect of Hodgkin’s language of abstraction. The result is an exhibition that feels steady, well considered and quietly resonant.

Published by Stiv in Art Lovers, Artists, London, Reviews, Travel lover

Tags: abstraction, art review, contemporary painting, Howard Hodgkin, London art exhibitions, Pitzhanger Manor

November 23, 2025 — Comments are off for this post.

David Hockney London Exhibition Review

This is an opinion piece. Views expressed are the author's own and do not constitute professional advice.

The David Hockney London exhibition at Annely Juda Fine Art lands with a burst of colour, a new gallery space and a reminder that Hockney still paints with more curiosity than most artists half his age. Opening in early November 2025 at the gallery’s new Hanover Square home, the show brings together brand new acrylic paintings and the first full UK presentation of The Moon Room. It’s confident, witty and exactly the kind of exhibition that gets London buzzing.

Published by Stiv in Art Lovers, LGBTQ+, London, Reviews

Tags: Annely Juda Fine Art, contemporary painting, David Hockney, Hockney exhibition, Hockney review, London art shows, London galleries, Moon Room, new Hockney paintings, UK art exhibitions