The best art exhibitions of 2016

YO WHAT'S HAPPENING, my name's Eddy B Frankel and I'm the god damn art editor here at Time Out. That's right, me. Eddy B Frankel: art editor. That means I get to make a list of my favourite shows of the year, and you get the pleasure of looking at it. Here it is, read it and weep.

The Infinite Mix at 180 Strand

 

A video posted by The Vinyl Factory (@thevinylfactory) on Sep 12, 2016 at 7:07am PDT

The Ethics of Dust at Houses of Parliament

 

A photo posted by Jonathan Tyler (@jonathantylerworld) on Sep 1, 2016 at 3:20pm PDT

Abstract Expressionism at The Royal Academy

 

A photo posted by Royal Academy (@royalacademyarts) on Oct 5, 2016 at 4:35am PDT

Donna Huanca at Zabludowicz Collection

 

A photo posted by Julie Tixier (@jl.txr) on Dec 13, 2016 at 8:54am PST

Anselm Kiefer at White Cube

 

A photo posted by katemccg (@kate_mccgwire) on Dec 14, 2016 at 6:39am PST

Jeff Koons at Newport Street Gallery

 

A photo posted by Sarah E (@cre8tivetimes) on Dec 15, 2016 at 12:43am PST

William Eggleston Portraits at the National Portrait Gallery

 

A photo posted by Annabel Herrick (@annabelherrick) on Oct 3, 2016 at 5:55am PDT

Animality at Marian Goodman

 

A photo posted by Lex (@aleximjmarshall) on Dec 14, 2016 at 5:29am PST

Yayoi Kusama at Victoria Miro

 

A photo posted by Cori Matius (@corimatius) on Dec 15, 2016 at 3:34am PST

Robert Rauschenberg at Tate Modern

 

A photo posted by Marseld Art (@marseld_art) on Dec 14, 2016 at 9:29am PST

Zaha Hadid at The Serpentine

 

A photo posted by Zaha Hadid Architects (@zahahadidarchitects) on Dec 14, 2016 at 5:32am PST

Molly Soda at Annka Kultys

 

A photo posted by Svitlana Kolesnichenko (@sveety_k) on Oct 13, 2016 at 1:52pm PDT

Bruce Nauman at BlainSouthern 

 

A photo posted by Krishan Parmar (@krishanparmar_) on Dec 13, 2016 at 4:15am PST

And the worst...

As a rule, we don't really review things that we think are terrible – our job is to recommend great things for you to see, not exercise our own egos by being mean about exhibitions. But some shows are too big to not cover, or might be something that people have to pay a fair amount of money to see, and then we have an obligation to knock 'em down a peg or two. Here's what I thought were the worst shows of the year. Yeah, loads of people loved the Kjartansson show, my colleague Matt even gave it four stars, but that shit sucked. 

South Africa: The Art of a Nation at the British Museum

Does trying to sum up the entire artistic production of a whole country in a five-room exhibition sound like a good idea? No. It doesn't.

Bill Viola at St Paul's Cathedral

Overblown, over-the-top and over-cooked, but still Bill Viola's installation in St Paul's manages to be totally eclipsed by its surroundings. It's enough to turn you into a satanist.

Björk Digital at Somerset House

Take away the already very dated-looking virtual reality technology, and this is just a really boring show of music videos that you could watch on YouTube. 

Ragnar Kjartansson at Barbican

The only idea happening here is 'find something to do, and then do it for a really long time', over and over again. Aesthetically and conceptually, this show made my face hurt.

Check out our top ten art exhibitions in London right now.