Top 5 Art Exhibitions in London - October 2026

Artienda selects the #Top5 Art Exhibitions in London during October 2026

Artienda serves up the #Top5 art exhibitions taking place in our wonderful capital city of London during this golden, leaf-kicking month of October. From Matisse and Picasso basking on the Côte d'Azur to Hokusai's Great Wave crashing into south London, via porcelain sculpture, Pictorialist photography and the swagger of the 90s, we've got you culturally covered. It's Frieze week too, so the whole city is buzzing with art. One request: if you go and see any of these exhibitions, please do ping us your feedback and ideas via any of our social media channels. Let's communicate and enjoy the fizz of bright sparks that new friendships create.

Wishing our network a super October full of crisp mornings, cosy evenings and inspiring gallery trips! xxx

Over 160 works capture the light, colour and glamour of the Côte d'Azur

#1 Painting the French Riviera | Royal Academy of Arts | London W1J 0BD

Swap the grey London drizzle for "swimming in blue air", as Monet described it. This sun-drenched show in the RA's Main Galleries brings together more than 160 works from the 1870s to the 1960s, charting how the French Riviera fired the imaginations of Picasso, Matisse, Cézanne, Renoir, Monet, Braque, Derain and Yves Klein. Alongside the paintings you'll find sculpture, vintage travel posters and film, tracing the coast's journey from artists' refuge to emblem of midcentury glamour.

Dates: 2nd October 2026 until 31st January 2027
Find out more: CLICK HERE

Nine white porcelain sculptures in dialogue with Old Masters and gilded interiors

#2 Metamorphoses: Porcelain Sculpture by Rachel Kneebone | The Wallace Collection | Manchester Square, London W1U 3BN

A free and wonderfully unexpected encounter. British sculptor Rachel Kneebone has placed nine of her glossy white porcelain works throughout the Wallace Collection's opulent galleries, including two pieces made especially for the display. Her restless, tangled forms of limbs, folds and bodies in flux sit on the grand staircase, hang above the landing and hide among the Old Masters and gilded furniture. Pick up the leaflet and hunt them all down – the contrast between old and new is thrilling.

Dates: Until 25th April 2027
Find out more: CLICK HERE

Curated by Edward Enninful, a celebration of a decade that changed British culture women.

#3 The 90s: Art and Fashion | Tate Britain | Millbank, London SW1P 4RG

Guest-curated by Edward Enninful, this is the first major exhibition to explore how art, photography and fashion collided in 1990s Britain. As the country emerged from recession, a wave of optimism, freedom and rebellion tore down the walls between high art and popular culture. Expect Steve McQueen, Damien Hirst, Sarah Lucas and Yinka Shonibare alongside fashion by Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, and era-defining photography by Juergen Teller, Corinne Day and David Sims. Pure Cool Britannia nostalgia.

Dates: 8th October 2026 until 14th February 2027
Find out more: CLICK HERE

Over 200 rare prints reveal photography's first steps as an art form

#4 Light and Magic: The Birth of Art Photography | Tate Modern | Bankside, London SE1 9TG

When did the camera become an artist's tool? This fascinating exhibition tells the story of Pictorialism, the international movement that transformed photography into fine art from the 1880s to the 1960s. More than 200 rare prints by over 80 photographers, from Seoul to Sydney, New York to Cape Town and Brazil to Singapore, show how these pioneers of the darkroom used soft focus, hand-worked prints and atmospheric light to create images that feel closer to painting than snapshot. Dreamy, moody and quietly magical.

Dates: 14th October 2026 until 21st February 2027
Find out more: CLICK HERE

The complete series, including The Great Wave, shown together in the UK for the first time

#5 Hokusai: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji from the Iuchi Collection | Dulwich Picture Gallery | London SE21 7AD

A landmark moment: for the first time in the UK, Katsushika Hokusai's complete Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji is on show together. Made between 1830 and 1833, these woodblock prints capture Japan's sacred mountain through shifting seasons, viewpoints and scenes of everyday life, glowing with the then newly available Prussian blue. All 46 prints are here, including the ten designs added later and an exceptional impression of The Great Wave. On loan from the Iuchi Collection in partnership with The National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo.

Dates: 20th October 2026 until 17th January 2027
Find out more: CLICK HERE

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Interested in discussing art and framing with the Artienda team? Contact us via our website or connect through our social media channels for all things art, interiors and creativity. Whether framing a cherished artwork or enhancing your space, we offer rich expertise and boundless enthusiasm. As the evenings draw in, there's no better time to bring some colour to your walls – we're very keen to forge new relationships and create inspiring art experiences, so get in touch today!

The Team @ Artienda xxx