Five free reasons to check out Wellcome Collection this summer

There’s no better time than a (hopefully) sweltering summer to reflect on the incredible role water plays in our lives. Opening on June 26, ‘Thirst: In Search of Freshwater’ is a major exhibition that weaves together contemporary artworks, historical artefacts and Indigenous knowledge from communities past and present to explore humanity’s deep and complex relationship with freshwater. Journey through sections on Aridity, Rain, Glaciers, Surface Water and Groundwater, and get up close to everything from a 3,000 year old clay tablet to a sonic artwork capturing the sounds of melting glaciers. You’ll never look at a bottle of Evian in the same way again! 

Wellcome Collection’s permanent exhibition, ‘Being Human’, is all about exactly that: what does it mean to be a person in the 21st century? Surveying our hopes and fears around medicine and the body through immersive and sensory experiences – ever wanted to sniff a bronze sculpture that smells like breast milk? Here, you can – 'Being Human' is affirming, fun, and full of surprises.

Running until November is the first major London show from Berlin-based artists Christine Sun Kim and Thomas Mader – they use humour, drawings, interactive sculpture, and films to explore new possibilities for understanding between signed and spoken languages. Their work challenges the stigmatisation of deafness as something that needs to be cured.

Later this summer, Finger Talk, a British Sign Language installation by Cathy Mager, will open, alongside a programme of deaf-led performances, workshops and tours that celebrate British Deaf Culture. 

Another of Wellcome Collection’s permanent features, the Reading Room is a book lover’s paradise. A blend of library and museum, it’s filled with comfy sofas and spaces to relax, and get stuck into one of the 1,000+ titles to explore – from fiction to memoirs, magazines and more, you name it – on offer. 

Zine-making has long provided a powerful and accessible way for marginalised communities to share stories and to express themselves – as long as you’ve got a pen and paper, you can make a zine. This summer, Wellcome Collection celebrates the creativity and activism of the disabled community, with ‘Zines Forever!’, a display exploring experiences of health through self published zines. Drawn from a selection of over 1,400 zines in Wellcome’s collection, the display touches on conditions from COVID-related sight loss to autism – plus, the display features a bed, so you can get comfy while expanding your horizons. 

Learn more about Wellcome Collection, 183 Euston Rd, NW1 2BE. Entry is free, galleries are open Tue-Wed 10am-6pm; Thu 10am-8pm; Fri-Sun 10am-6pm