With access to hundreds of museums and galleries a tube ride away, we Londoners are spoilt for choice when it comes to a fun day out. But sometimes the capital’s embarrassment of riches means it’s tricky to pick where to go.
Do you disappear into the National Gallery for an afternoon, pop by some of the independent galleries in Marylebone, explore East London’s exciting offerings, or wander around the Tate?
Look no further every week: here’s our pick of five extraordinary exhibitions to see in London right now.
Oscar Murillo: The Flooded Garden
Oscar Murillo is transforming the Tate’s enormous Turbine Hall into a painted garden, inspired by Claude Monet. The delightful twist is that visitors of all ages are invited to add to the piece, with paintbrushes, paint and protective equipment (if you ask for it) provided. When the Columbian artist spoke to the Standard in July he explained: “It’s about unbound freedom and unbound connection to just letting go.”
Tate Modern, to August 26; tate.org.uk
Utopia
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A collaboration with environmental organisation ClientEarth, Utopia showcases the work of five artists – Alicja Biala, Enej Gala, Ranny Macdonald, Laila Tara H and Emily Wilcock – who ask questions about the sustainability of exhibitions. Imagining a future in which practices are nature-led, the artists have tried to create a carbon-neutral space, making sculptures made from recycled materials and paintings from natural pigments.
Incubator Gallery, to September 8; incubatorart.com
Yoi
This joyful exhibition, featuring the paintings of nine Munupi artists, is a collaboration with the Munupi Arts & Crafts Association, an art centre situated on one of Australia’s tiny northern Tiwi Islands (a group of 11 islands with a total population of about 3,000 – 90 per cent of whom are the Aboriginal people, Tiwi). Yoi, which means dancing, plays a crucial role on the island, with narrative dances an important way of sharing stories, memories, and knowledge. This show delves into the mark-making techniques of Tiwi Art and explores Yoi.
Saatchi Gallery, to September 21; saatchigallery.com
Roger Mayne: Youth
British photographer Roger Mayne, who died in 2014, masterfully captured Londoners hanging out on the street in the Fifties and Sixties. Best known for his shots of young people, his Black and White images are truly fantastic: evocative, transporting, often gritty, frequently humorous – full of life. It’s a testament to their quality that The Courtauld has chosen to display 60 of Mayne’s pictures as its first exhibition of photography in its 92-year history.
Courtauld Gallery, to October 6; courtauld.ac.uk
Expressionists: Kandinsky, Münter and the Blue Rider
Der Blaue Reiter – the Blue Rider in English – was a network of German Expressionists, that included artists Albert Bloch, Wassily Kandinsky, Alexander Sacharoff, Franz Marc and Marianne von Werefkin. The group, led by Wassily Kandinsky and Gabriele Münter, were bound together by an ambition to transform modern art, creating challenging, non-conformist work. They sometimes exhibited together in the early 20th century. Here see over 130 of their remarkable works – from paintings and sculpture, to sound installations and photography.
