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London summer may be drawing to a close, but if you’re already dreading the day when you have to retrieve your chunky knits from that old suitcase under your bed, then allow us to give you something – or, in fact, 10 things – to look forward to as the nights get darker.
London’s parks are looking a little lifeless after a season of back-to-back heatwaves and non-stop festivals, but the capital’s art scene is bursting into life. Autumn is unquestionably the best season of the year for art-lovers, with loads of art fairs in town – including major industry fixtures Frieze and Frieze Masters – and blockbuster exhibitions opening at the city’s biggest galleries.
From renaissance portraiture to contemporary fashion photography, major impressionists to minimalist pioneers, there are so many great shows on the horizon that it’ll require some deft planning to pack them all in. So grab your diary and read on for our pick of the best exhibitions coming to London this autumn.
10 London art exhibitions we’re most excited about in autumn 2026
1. Jenkin Van Zyl: ‘Enclosure’ at Somerset House
Named one of Time Out's young London artists to watch a few years back, Jenkin Van Zyl asks pertinent questions about the systems we create for ourselves and the human need for self-preservation. His immersive installations cast visitors in a variety of unsettling scenarios: his upcoming show at Somerset House is a large-scale work where visitors move through ‘facility’, past fairground signage, holograms, inflatable cocoons and decaying ephemera.
Somerset House. Sept 24-Nov 29. Free.
2. ‘The 90s: Art and Fashion’ at Tate Britain
Tate’s 2026 programming has been big on the 90s! Following on Tate Modern’s fabulous retrospective on YBA Tracey Emin, Tate Britain’s blockbuster autumn show examines the British art, fashion, photography and pop culture in the final decade of the last millennium. Curated by former British Vogue editor Edward Enninful, it will feature photography from the likes of Juergen Teller, Nick Knight and Corinne Day, iconic Westwood and McQueen looks, and era-defining art by Damien Hirst, Gillian Wearing, and Yinka Shonibare.
Tate Britain. Oct 8-Feb 14 2027. £22.
3. Salman Toor: ‘Someone Like You’ at The Courtauld
The Courtauld hosts a first solo European exhibition for Pakistan-born, New York-based artist Salman Toor from October. Toor explores the struggle and desire for belonging, both culturally and emotionally through this collection of 19 paintings, which are inspired by both his personal experiences as a South Asian queer man and his admiration for baroque and 18th-century masters.
Courtauld Gallery. Oct 2-Jan 10 2027. £18.
4. ‘Renoir and Love’ at The National Gallery
His reputation might not be up there with Monet and Degas, but London’s art lovers go mad for a bit of French impressionism. It’s a little surprising that the capital hasn’t hosted an exhibition on one of its leading figures, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, since the National Gallery’s 2007 show on his landscapes nearly 20 years ago. The gallery’s new exhibition is doubly timely, what with the high-profile heist that recently took place at the Musée Renoir in the south of France, and will feature several of Renoir’s most iconic works, including the 1876 painting ‘Bal au Moulin de la Galette’, exhibited for the first time ever in the UK. Here’s hoping security is a little less lax at the Trafalgar Square institution.
National Gallery. Oct 3-Jan 31 2027. From £20.
5. Robert Ryman: ‘The Real Thing’ at The Barbican
The late American painter Robert Ryman was a master of minimalism, even if he was reluctant to apply the term to his own work. His signature white-on-white paintings urge the viewer to look closely at his brushstrokes, in all their tactile glory, and to enjoy the subtlety and nuance of the varied effects he achieved. He’s not often shown in the UK, with this Barbican exhibition constituting a first major airing here in over 30 years. There’ll be 60 paintings on display, spanning his six-decade career.
Barbican Gallery Oct 8-Feb 28 2027. Price TBC.
6. Tim Walker’s Fairyland: ‘Love and Legends’ at The National Portrait Gallery
Best known for his eye-popping, fantastical fashion photography for titles including British Vogue and i-D, British photographer Tim Walker has spent the past five years photographing the nation’s LGBTQ+ trailblazers in preparation for this major exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, his first show in London since the V&A’s acclaimed exhibition in 2019.
The National Portrait Gallery. Oct 9-Feb 7 2027. Price TBC.
7. Hokusai: ‘Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji’ at Dulwich Picture Gallery
Even if you know absolutely nothing about Japanese printmaker Katsushika Hokusai, there’s a good chance you know ‘The Great Wave’. Depicting Mount Fuji dwarfed by a huge wave, it’s the most iconic work of his 1831 series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, which is widely regarded as one of the greatest achievements in the history of printmaking thanks to its embrace of vivid pigments and ukiyo-e woodblock techniques. It’s rarely seen outside of Japan in its entirety, and this exhibition marks the first time in the UK that the complete set of 46 prints (the original 36, plus the 10 expanded works) have been brought together.
Dulwich Picture Gallery. Oct 20-Jan 17 2027. From £21.50.
8. Nan Goldin: ‘You Never Did Anything Wrong’ at The Hayward Gallery
London’s photography fans might have been dismayed that the major Nan Goldin retrospective that has been touring around Europe over the last few years never made it across the channel, but this brand new show at the Hayward Gallery should soften the blow. The American photographer and activist’s first institutional exhibition in the UK since 2022, its main focus is You Never Did Anything Wrong Part I (2024) and Part II (2026), a pair of abstract films scored by the composer Mica Levi and screened in bespoke spaces designed with architect Hala Wardé.
Hayward Gallery. Nov 24-Mar 14 2027. From £19.
9. ‘Van Eyck: The Portraits’ at The National Gallery
Before Jan Van Eyck came along in the 1430s, depictions of people were mostly (but not always) rigid, flat and unrealistic, representing general religious archetypes rather than real-life figures. The early renaissance painter basically invented portraiture as we know it today, capturing all the intimate details of craftsmen, merchants and members of his family, from subtle stubble to flushed cheeks to bloodshot eyes. This landmark exhibition will mark the first time that all nine of the artist’s surviving portraits are on display together – the pieces are so fragile that they very rarely travel – so consider this a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
National Gallery. Nov 21-Apr 11 2027. Price TBC.
10. ‘Painting the French Riviera’ at The Royal Academy
Take a break from rainy autumnal London and pretend you’re taking in the sea air on the Côte d’Azur at this Royal Academy exhibition. Spanning impressionists, post-umpressionists and modernists, it brings together artworks a whole bunch of greats, including Monet, Braque, Picasso, Matisse, Cézanne, Renoir and Klein, to explore how the glorious natural light and sparkling azure sea of the riviera was inextricably linked to the rise of modern art.
Royal Academy. Oct 2-Jan 31 2027. From £24.
Plus, the Courtauld Gallery just announced its 2027 exhibition programme – featuring Paula Rego, JMW Turner, Georgia O’Keeffe and Rubens
And Andy Burnham reveals which major artwork he wants to come to the UK
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