{"id":212868,"date":"2025-06-25T10:15:17","date_gmt":"2025-06-25T10:15:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/212868\/"},"modified":"2025-06-25T10:15:17","modified_gmt":"2025-06-25T10:15:17","slug":"the-best-free-art-exhibitions-to-explore-in-london","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/212868\/","title":{"rendered":"The best free art exhibitions to explore in London"},"content":{"rendered":"

The high cost of living in London<\/a> is no excuse to miss out on the rich culture<\/a> the capital has to offer. <\/p>\n

Many of the city\u2019s art<\/a> exhibitions<\/a> and events are affordable \u2014 and, better yet, a great number of them are completely free. <\/p>\n

This guide proves you can immerse yourself in London<\/a>\u2019s vibrant cultural scene without breaking the bank.<\/p>\n

After all, the best things in life are free (though, to quote Coco Chanel, the second-best things are usually very, very expensive). <\/p>\n

Giuseppe Penone: Thoughts in the Roots<\/p>\n

\"Giuseppe<\/p>\n

\u00a9Photo: George Darrell. Courtesy Giuseppe Penone and Serpentine.<\/p>\n

Featuring sculpture, drawing, painting, installation and photography, this hugely popular exhibition encompasses over five decades of the Italian artist\u2019s work. The forests of Northern Italy was a major inspiration to Penone, who was fascinated by the relationship between humans and nature, organic and artistic practices.<\/p>\n

Alexandra Metcalf: Gaaaaaaasp<\/p>\n

\"london<\/p>\n

Courtesy of the artist and Ginny on Frederick<\/p>\n

The first solo exhibition of London-born artist Alexandra Metcalf, Gaaaaaaasp is an exploration of gender and interiority through depictions of psychological turmoil. Comprised of both paintings and spatial installations, navigating the exhibition is a visceral experience, harking back to England\u2019s psychiatric spaces in the mid-20th century.<\/p>\n

\"fake<\/p>\n

Stuart Middleton, 2024. Courtesy Carlos\/Ishikawa<\/p>\n

Co-organised by three London-based artists, Fake Barn Country is an experimental selection of eclectic mixed-media artworks created by over two dozen artists.<\/p>\n

Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser: Art Now Hylozoic\/Desires<\/p>\n

\"Hylozoic\/Desires<\/p>\n

Courtesy of the artists<\/p>\n

Devised by artist duo Himali Singh Soin & David Soin Tappeser, this new moving image installation is an exploration of the \u201chedge\u201d as poetic and political space. Through experimental poetry, music and film, the artwork unpacks the symbolism of a 2,500 km hedge grown by the British Empire in the 1800s.<\/p>\n

Andrea Mantegna: The Triumphs of Caesar<\/p>\n

\"andrea<\/p>\n

Royal Collection Trust \/ His Majesty King Charles III 2023<\/p>\n

Since 2023, the National Gallery has displayed six of the Renaissance artist\u2019s greatest masterpieces, which have been loaned from the King. Regarded as one of the finest achievements of Italian Renaissance art, Mantegna\u2019s nine canvases depict the power and eventual collapse of Ancient Rome.<\/p>\n

\"Black<\/p>\n

Black Sound London exhibition at the Barbican<\/p>\n

The Barbican<\/p>\n

The Barbican Music Library is hosting Black Sound London, an exhibition showcasing British black music<\/a> and its global influence, spanning jazz<\/a>, lovers\u2019 rock, jungle, grime and drill. <\/p>\n

Bringing together vintage mixtapes, renowned magazine covers and fly-posted walls, the exhibition unpacks how movements such as grime and lovers’ rock reshaped the sound of Britain \u2014 and have evolved into powerful statements of identity and resistance today.<\/p>\n

Arpita Singh: Remembering <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Arpita Singh tells the stories of womanhood, political turmoil, and social injustice <\/p>\n

Jo Underhill \/ Arpita Singh and Serpentine<\/p>\n

In her first solo exhibition outside of India, Kolkata\u2013born Arpita Singh tells the stories of womanhood, political turmoil, and social injustice across 60 years of art at The Serpentine Galleries.<\/p>\n

From black and white watercolours in her youth, through to the vibrant and colourful Bengali folk oil paintings that dominate her career, Singh\u2019s work is a chronology of emotion, culture<\/a>, and female experience. <\/p>\n

Blending surrealism with traditional Indian motifs, her art explores everything from motherhood to vulnerability, reflecting a life shaped by both domestic intimacy and public struggle. <\/p>\n

\"Materials<\/p>\n

Materials and Objects exhibition at the Tate <\/p>\n

Sam Day \/ Tate<\/p>\n

Eleven rooms of the Tate are dedicated to this visual exploration of the varied materials that artists have used over the decades. Expect to see works such as Doris Salcedo’s famous metal structures, Marcel Duchamp\u2019s toilet seat and Sarah Sze\u2019s installations.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Sculpture in the City is still on but be quick, as it only on till the end of spring<\/p>\n

Richard Mackness \/ Nick Turpin<\/p>\n

If it\u2019s the rare English sunshine you\u2019re after, Sculpture in the City is an open-air gallery, featuring 17 artworks across the City of London district. Embark on a treasure hunt across the city to see installations by Maya Rose Edwards, Richard Mackness, and Arturo Herrera. <\/p>\n

Keith Piper & Rex Whistler: Viva Voce<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Two works of art are united for this exhibition<\/p>\n

Joe Humphrys \/ Tate <\/p>\n

This commission reunites two pieces of art created nearly a century apart, designed for the same Tate Britain<\/a> space. One is a mural from the 1920s, painted directly onto the gallery’s walls, while the other is a film installation created in response to the mural. Together, these works raise important questions about our interaction with historical art.<\/p>\n

The goal is to spark a conversation about engaging with historical works. \u201cI know there is an argument among young people now that these images retraumatise, but I think we either look or forget,\u201d said Piper. \u201cTo keep a clear sense of history, we need to see these things. We need to recognise the importance throughout black struggles and the significance of difficult images.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eileen Perrier: A Thousand Small Stories <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Autograph\/Eileen Perrier<\/p>\n

London-born photographer Eileen Perrier presents a striking portrait series that documents individuals within their communities, from Peckham to Paris. Her work challenges traditional beauty standards and questions the commodification of identity. While each image captures a distinct personality, the collection as a whole offers a broader reflection on community, representation, and belonging. <\/p>\n

Christine Sun Kim and Thomas Mader: 1880 THAT<\/p>\n

\"1880<\/p>\n

1880 THAT: Christine Sun Kim and Thomas Mader. 2025<\/p>\n

Courtesy of the artists<\/p>\n

1880 THAT<\/a> is all about sign language. A playful exhibition meets a powerful and very real cause, created due to the frustration with the exclusion of deaf people. The exhibition comprises video, Pop Art, and sculpture replicating and representing the feeling of losing a language. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The high cost of living in London is no excuse to miss out on the rich culture the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":212869,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[2606,748,2766,393,4884,257,7586,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-212868","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-art","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-culture","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-london","14":"tag-tate-britain","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114743484856542958","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212868","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=212868"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212868\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/212869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=212868"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=212868"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=212868"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}