11 London art exhibitions we can’t wait to see in summer 2022

The Barbican Curve will become a space for meditation on the ecological future of our planet in this experiential new group exhibition. Artists from around the world have been brought together to show work about the earth, including crockery made for animals, an immersive soil experience, plankton noise, fashion made out of living cells, and a chance to experience ‘tree time’. 

Rumour has it that one of the greatest quotes in history – ‘good artists borrow, great artists steal’ – was first attributed to none other than twentieth-century master Pablo Picasso. It’s a believable attribution, because Pablo loved a good bit of artistic theft, as evidenced by this show pitting Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres’s ‘Madame Moitessier’ from 1856 against Pablo’s ‘Woman with a Book’ from 1932. It’s a small, free show, but a brilliant chance to see artistic inspiration (and burglary) at work. 

Things are about to get seriously fantastical as the Hayward Gallery takes a deep dive into the work of Black artists who mash together folklore, myth, science fiction and spiritual traditions. Expect immersive film installations, scupltures, paintings and photos by artists include Ellen Gallagher, Hew Locke, Chris Ofili and Kara Walker, all using fantasy to twist historical ideas into powerful, politically charged new shapes. 

Sickert is one of Britain’s most enigmatic artists. He left behind a radical body of work, depicting dark, intimate nudes and portraits of actors and musicians, and in the process laid the groundwork for the figurative experimentalism of countless painters to come. Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Jenny Saville – they all owe Sickert a hell of a lot. 

Munch is the great master of human torment. His iconic paintings have defined how generations of artists depicted pain and anguish. So this show of works largely loaned from his home country of Norway should be fun. 

A first-ever institutional show for Londoner Penny Goring, featuring lifesize dolls, fabric sculptures, drawings and poetry tackling issues like trauma, violence, PTSD and the ongoing impact of austerity. 

Over the past few years, 180 The Strand has become the ultimate destination for lovers of immersive art. And with good reason, because exhibition after exhibition, the team there manages to put on the most visually stunning, intensely immersive art shows in town, and this new one looks to be no different. ‘Future Shock’ features artists including Lawrence Lek, Gaika and United Visual Artists, all delivering experiential art that you will know every inch of, even if you don’t go see it, because it will be all over your Instagram in a plague of art selfies.

Combining ancient sculpture, sacred artefacts and contemporary art from six continents, this exhibition explores the global history of female spiritual beings. We’re talking demons, spirits, saints, fairies and everything in between. From satanic consorts to gods of death, this show is an exploration of the enduring power of female spirituality throughout history.

For centuries, artists have been hellbent on painting women in windows. Just stood there, looking wistfully out at the world. It’s a very odd, but very real, trope that pops up over and over again in the work of artists ranging from David Hockney to Rembrandt. And now, the Dulwich Picture Gallery is dedicating a whole exhibition to asking: ‘errr...why?’

She’s exploded sheds and trampled French horns, and in the process, Cornelia Parker has become one of the most mesmerising, instantly recognisable British artists working today. This major retrospective will include loads of breathtaking installations, all dealing with issues of violence, ecology, history and human rights. And also her apparent hatred for garden furniture.