The 35 best art galleries in London

For 250 years, Britain’s first art school has been a hotbed of artistic talent. You name ’em, they were an Academician. As well as a sizeable free permanent collection display, the RA’s also got serious pedigree when it comes to putting on big shows. Its temporary exhibitions are ultra-well researched, ambitious things, that are always worth visiting, like 2016’s totally incredible ‘Abstract Expressionism’ show and 2022’s magnificent Francis Bacon retrospective. The annual Summer Exhibition is also always a treat, because where else would you see a Tracey Emin next to a Joe Lycett? This place is just as important as it’s ever been.

Burlington House, Piccadilly, W1J 0BD

The Tate Modern is one of London, and the world’s, most iconic art galleries, and it welcomes a stonking five million visitors through its doors each year. As well as having an international collection of modern and contemporary artworks that few can beat – Matisse, Picasso, Abramovich, Hepworth, Warhol, Lichtenstein, it has the lot – it is a historic piece of architecture worth visiting in its own right. It’s hard to imagine how empty London’s modern art scene must have been before this place opened, but we’re sure glad it did. 

Bankside, SE1 9TG

Da Vinci! Velázquez! Van Gogh! Rubens! Hoooo, mama, the National Gallery is full of huge names, and represents the mother of all art collections. You can’t walk through its calming rooms without falling completely in love with art. And (except for its fantastic blockbuster exhibitions of work by the likes of Caravaggio and Michelangelo) it won’t cost you a penny. 

Trafalgar Square, WC2N 5DN

Between the regular commissions for the Curve gallery (of which the exhibitions are usually free) and the always interesting shows in its main exhibition space and its newly resurrected Sculpture Court, the Barbican is a serious destination for art lovers. Whether it’s an endless torrent of rain that won’t get you wet, a giant soil sculpture or a passionately in-depth look at Jean-Michel Basquiat, these concrete halls always come up with the goods.

Beech Street, Barbican, EC2Y 8AE

After falling into the art world by accident, the rather wealthy Alex Sainsbury (yes, from the supermarket) started Raven Row in 2009 by taking over two adjoining houses dating from 1690, splashing around a lot of white paint (with the help of architects 6a) and presenting an inaugural exhibition by New York pop artist Ray Johnson. Almost 20 years later the gallery hasn’t upped sticks to St James’ like a lot of commercial places do, and remains one of east London’s best places to see contemporary art.  

56 Artillery Lane, E1 7LS

Since reopening after a grand refurbishment in 2023, the NPG is back proving that portraits don't have to be stuffy. It has a great history: established in 1856 as an archive of exemplary figures, it was the first museum, outside the Uffizi’s self-portrait corridor in Florence, to be devoted entirely to portraits. Spanning six centuries, today the gallery claims to have the world's greatest collection of portraits. Plus, the gallery’s new bronze doors were designed by Tracey Emin, and they’re worth a look at in their own right. 

St Martin's Place, WC2H 0HE 

This spot is heaven for anyone who’s tired of paintings and sculptures. Opened in 1971, the Photographers’ Gallery was the UK’s first public gallery dedicated solely to photography. Today, it’s still one of London’s only non-commercial galleries entirely focussed on the medium. Programming here is forward-thinking, varied and interesting, with exhibitions spanning music photography, unsung pioneers and iconic artists. After a handsome renovation in 2018, nowadays the gallery boasts six storeys of spacious displays, a lovely bookshop, print sales room and café on the ground floor. 

16-18 Ramillies Street, W1F 7LW

This small commercial gallery is helping to keep Bethnal Green’s art heart beating. The building itself – a graffitied block on Cambridge Heath Road – has an arty and interesting history, with former stints as an umbrella factory and the studio of Turner Prize-winning photographer Wolfgang Tillmans. Inside it hosts some of London’s most exciting and cutting-edge contemporary art shows, with previous exhibitions coming from the likes of Jenkin Van Zyl and Parker Ito. 

223 Cambridge Heath Road, E2 0EL

Tate Modern gets all the attention, but the original Tate Gallery, founded by sugar magnate Sir Henry Tate, has a broader and more inclusive brief. Housed in a stately Portland stone building on the riverside, Tate Britain is second only to the National Gallery when it comes to British art. The historical collection includes work by Hogarth, Gainsborough, Reynolds, Constable (who gets three rooms) and JWM Turner (in the superb Clore Gallery). Many contemporary works were shifted to the other Tate when it opened, but Stanley Spencer, Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon are all well represented, and Art Now installations showcase up-and-coming British artists. 

Millbank, SW1P 4RG

Nestled next to Camberwell School of Art and with Goldsmiths to the east, you’d expect the South London Gallery to know its art onions – and you’d be right. This gallery is fast becoming one of the city’s most important art spaces, programming some of the biggest up-and-coming names. Art shows here are consistently exciting, with impressive installations that transport you to new places. Exhibitions are free to enter, and span the gallery's two buildings: the capacious original gallery, and the new converted fire station down the road.  

65 Peckham Road, SE5 8UH

Opening in 1997 with exhibitions by John Currin and Sarah Lucas, Sadie Coles is now a well-respected contemporary art gallery with several outposts in London’s centre. Flooded with light, Sadie Coles’s big Soho warehouse is the perfect place to catch her fantastic roster of artists – Martine Syms, Raymond Pettibon and Monster Chetwynd among them. Keep an eye out for the gallery’s ‘Gargle’ event series too, which hosts monthly live talks, performances and readings from on-the-pulse London artists and collectives like Hela Press, Motor Dance Journal and Climax Books. 

62 Kingly Street, W1B 5QN

There’s some serious pedigree to this exceptional gallery, located since 1989 within Somerset House. It’s part of the Courtauld Institute of Art (itself connected to the University of London), and has been showcasing world-class art since the 1930s. It’s now home to more than 500 paintings, and a further 26,000 prints and drawings. The artwork ranges from the Middle Ages all the way through to 20th-century masterpieces. Highlights include three Van Goghs (including ‘Self Portrait with Bandaged Ear’), as well as works from Gainsborough, van Dyck, Rubens, Degas, Monet, Goya and Botticelli.

Somerset House, The Strand, WC2R 0RN

With outposts in New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Hong Kong, David Zwirner is a really important international modern art gallery. The London location, housed inside a gleaming white five-storey Georgian townhouse, is sort of what you’d expect from a swanky Mayfair commercial gallery. Don’t be intimidated though, because a visit to David Zwirner will give you the chance to see some museum-quality exhibitions – and they always deliver, whether it’s with the cartoon pop of Rose Wylie or the mid-century modernist classicism of Josef Albers.

24 Grafton Street, W1S 4EZ

Located in a converted 1930s veneer factory near Victoria Park, this not-for-profit has been setting out its stall as one London’s most radical commissioners of new art since the ‘80s. It’s always a challenge, and always surprising. You never know what you’re going to get, but you know it’s going to get the old noggin ticking. Artists who have worked with the Chiz include Turner Prize-winners Rachel Whiteread and Wolfgang Tillmans, as well as Cornelia Parker and Argentinian artist Pablo Bronstein, whose work spans performance, choreography, drawing and sculpture. 

64 Chisenhale Road, E3 5QZ

Intriguing documentaries, boundary-breaking art exhibitions, experimental gigs and artist talks... you'll find them all at arts space ICA. Founded in 1947 by a collective of poets, artists and critics, it's had a huge influence on London's creative life. In the 1960s, it was the birthplace of the burgeoning Pop Art scene, and also nurtured the rise of Op Art and Brutalism. Nowadays there are far more contemporary art galleries around to host challenging work, so ICA's niche is in supporting the next generation. Look out for its open call exhibition New Contemporaries each January to spot the next big art movement headed our way. 

The Mall, SW1Y 5AH

Flying the flag for Clapham’s are scene, this non-profit gallery and artist studios is a beacon of artistic hope, and is dedicated to championing the work of emerging and under-represented creators. All of the exhibitions here seem to have an edge of cultural criticism that is not just welcome but very much needed.

1a Nelson's Row, SW4 7JR

The Southbank Centre’s glorious heap of concrete brutalism got a swish makeover in 2018 and reopened with exhibitions featuring artists including Diane Arbus, Lee Bul and Andreas Gursky. Eight years on the Hayward continues to exhibit innovative and interesting art shows spanning painting, photography and sculpture from the likes of Anish Kapoor, Nan Goldin and Yoshitomo Nara. Some people hate this building (King Charles is one of them), but that just makes us love it more. 

Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX

This (relatively) bijou building is the oldest public art gallery in the UK. It was created after two eighteenth century artists, Noël Desenfans and Sir Francis Bourgeois (no, not the train guy) were tasked by the King of Poland to form a Royal Collection from scratch. Today its light-filled spaces, designed and built by architect Sir John Soane, house a brilliant collection including work by Rembrandt, Rubens, Poussin and Gainsborough. It also has an annual pavilion commission, just to give the Serpentine a run for its money, and its temporary shows are well worth a trip across town.

Gallery Road, SE21 7AD

Larry Gagosian is essentially the biggest gallerist in the world. Think of any famous modern artist, chances are Lazza has got something of theirs in his vault. After recently closing his location on Piccadilly’s Burlington Arcade, the impresario still has his massive gallery at 20 Grosvenor Hill – a huge white-walled space that stages shows by the likes of René Magritte, Rachel Whiteread and Nan Goldin. He also one little piddler of a gallery at 17–19 Davies Street in Mayfair, for shows by artists like, oh, you know, Picasso. It’s worth noting that both galleries are only open on week days. 

20 Grosvenor Hill, W1K 3QD

Found on the campus of Goldsmiths University, don’t be surprised if you see painfully cool students dressed artfully in charity shop garms wondering the halls of this free gallery. Designed by Turner Prize-winning architecture collective Assemble, this gallery in a grade II-listed former Victorian bathhouse seems hellbent on ignoring all the usual art conventions and putting on whatever challenging shows it bloody wants. Which is a really, really good thing. 

St James's, New Cross, SE14 6AD

Way up on Finchley Road, Camden Art Centre has been quietly ploughing its own artistic furrow since 1965 (it was Hampstead Central Library before that). Go for free contemporary art exhibitions by the likes of Richard Wright, Lonnie Holley and Duane Linklater. Or check out the line-up of workshops and events where you can learn skills like making dyes, or attend book launches by local writers. Camden also boasts a great bookshop, a lovely garden and an ace café.

Arkwright Road, NW3 6DG

When this gallery opened back in 1989, its bread and butter was good ol’ fashioned drawings. These days Frith Street dabbles in film, photography, painting and sculpture. With multiple solo shows a year and an annual independently curated annual summer show – there’s plenty to see all year around. Works by the gallery’s artists often wind up on display at London’s top cultural institutions including the Tate, Barbican and Royal Academy. Most exhibitions are held at Frith Street’s Golden Square gallery, with some select shows taking place at its Soho Square outpost. 

17-18 Golden Square, W1F 9JJ

Located inside an unsuspecting old sandwich shop by Smithfield Market and Fabric nightclub (the entrance still bears a sign reading ‘Sunset Sandwich Bar II’), this tiny gallery is anything but as humdrum as its exterior would suggest. Since being founded by Freddie Powell in 2021, Ginny on Frederick’s single tiled room has made a name for itself by hosting quirky and diverse shows by young and up-and-coming artists. 

99 Charterhouse Street, EC1M 6HR

Tucked away at the secluded western edge of central London’s biggest park, the twin Serpentine galleries (South is the older one, North is its new newish little sibling), are an oasis of contemporary art in very genteel, leafy surroundings. They both do a rolling two-monthly programme of exhibitions featuring up-to-the-minute artists, which, combined with its annual Serpentine Pavilion (a new architectural something-or-other commissioned every spring from some renowned architect and plonked in the park between June and September), make it a primo destination for culture vultures in the city.

Kensington Gardens, W2 3XA

Once dubbed ‘the queen of old ladies’, writer and curator Alison Jacques has been championing underrepresented and forgotten female artists since opening her gallery in 2004. Her swish Fitzrovia space, now based on Cork Street, can be credited for the revival of the careers of several female artists including Dorothea Tanning, Hannah Wilke and Sheila Hicks. Alison Jacques also represents the estates of groundbreaking big names like Robert Mapplethorpe and Ana Mendieta and has staged exhibitions curated by David Hockney, the Scissor Sisters and Patti Smith. 

22 Cork Street, W1S 3NG

Forget all that fancy modern art with its highfalutin’ conceptualism and performance shenanigans. Sometimes you just need a nice old painting of a lady on a swing. The Wallace Collection has a great one – by Fragonard – alongside tons of other fantastic pre-modern paintings inside its 18th-century townhouse just off Oxford street. It’s also got a cracking collection of 18th-century French furniture, objets d’art and a basement full of medieval armour, for when all the paintings get a bit much. 

Hertford House, Manchester Square, W1U 3BN 

Hauser & Wirth is one of the bigwigs in Europe’s international art scene. Founded in 1992 in Zurich by married couple Iwan and Manuela Wirth, alongside Ursula Hauser, now Hauser & Wirth has locations all over Europe and the world, including LA, Hong Kong and Somerset. The gallery represents some really big artists of the 20th century, including Philip Guston, Mike Kelley, Louise Bourgeois and Eva Hesse, and it’s one of London’s most important commercial spaces.  

23 Savile Row, W1S 2ET

Autograph was founded in Brixton in 1988 as an organisation to support Black photographers – back then it was known as the Association of Black Photographers. Still going strong almost 40 years later, now Autograph operates as a free art gallery, research centre and advocacy charity out of its HQ in Rivington Square in Shoreditch. Displaying mainly photography and film, Autograph platforms artists who explore issues of race and identity in their work – it’s essential stuff. 

Rivington Place, EC2A 3BA

One of London's pioneering contemporary galleries, Lisson was set up in 1967 by art dealer Nicholas Logsdail. It has always represented artists who challenge the status quo. First there were the ‘60s minimalist painters such as Sol LeWitt and Robert Mangold. Then came the genre-busting New British Sculptors of the ‘80s with the likes of Anish Kapoor, Julian Opie and the poetic conceptualists of the early ‘90s (Rodney Graham, Douglas Gordon, Tatsuo Miyajima and Francis Alÿs). It’s just as relevant today, with a new generation of bright young art things currently in its care. 

27 Bell Street, NW1 5BY and 67 Lisson Street, NW1 5DA

Since 1901, Whitechapel Art Gallery has built a reputation as a pioneering contemporary institution, giving early, important exhibitions to artists like Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Frida Kahlo. It got a big refurb in 2009, when it was transformed into a vibrant, holistic centre of art complete with a research centre, archives room and café. Its main exhibitions are often great, but it’s the more experimental stuff in the archive and library areas that are usually the most interesting. 

77-82 Whitechapel High St, E1 7QX

You might know this cavernous Old Street gallery as the place everyone queues around the block to get into whenever it puts on a Yayoi Kusama show. But there’s more to this beautiful space than just Kusama, and a visit to this ex-Victorian furniture factory rarely disappoints. Among the glittering clutch of artists it represents are Turner Prize winners Grayson Perry and Chris Ofili. 

16 Wharf Road, N1 7RW

This huge listed Mayfair townhouse looks like a spa, with five storeys of serene white spaces and immaculate marbled floors, but the only thing getting a treatment here is your eyes. With outposts in London, Paris, Salzburg, Milan and Seoul, Thaddeus Ropac represents some of the most exciting names in contemporary art and stages exhibitions with works from big names such as Robert Rauschenberg, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and Joseph Beuys. 

Ely House, 37 Dover Street, W1S 4NJ

White Cube Bermondsey is London’s ultimate commercial gallery. The one that started it all. White Cube brought us Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst and loads of other YBAs. And after moving into its huge south London space a few years ago, it became one of the first museum-quality commercial spaces in the world. With no permanent collection, the changing exhibitions here feel like shows at massive institutions. Their Emin, Andreas Gursky and Anselm Kiefer shows are worthy of any Tate or RA. 

144-152 Bermondsey Street, SE1 3TQ

Founded in Peckham in 2011, this commercial art gallery has operated out of a bright two-storey space in swanky Mayfair since 2021. It’s bread and butter is early to mid-career artists whose work often raises questions around identity, politics and society, including British 2023 Turner Prize winner Jesse Darling, and 2025 Turner Prize nominees Rene Matić and Nnena Kalu. Exhibitions staged at 35 Duke Street are challenging, radical and regularly-changing.

35 Duke Street, W1U 1LH

Originally drawing on the collection of Charles Saatchi, a famous supporter of the Yound British Artists – Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, Gavin Turk, Sarah Lucas and the like – when the Saatchi opened in its current Chelsea location in 2008 it surprised many that the opening exhibition was of new Chinese art. The Saatchi continues to surprise, and these days, after more than 40 years in the biz, it’s a globally recognised authority in the contemporary art world. 

Duke of York's HQ, King's Road, SW3 4RY