The 7 Best New London Art Exhibitions Opening in May 2025

I know we say this every month, but May really is looking like a particularly great time for art-lovers – not least because you have two bank holidays to fill with shows, as well as two major institutional openings as the V&A East Storehouse opens its doors and the National Gallery unveils its refurbished Sainsbury Wing.

Of course, there are a load of excellent art and photography exhibitions already on, but if you want to see what’s brand-spanking new, look ahead for our round-up of the best exhibition openings this month. From the Tate Modern’s eagerly anticipated Genesis Exhibition, where you can see Do Ho Suh’s vast, architectural fabric installations in the flesh, to Alberto Giacometti’s spindly human-like sculptures and another photography takeover of Somerset House, London is basically bursting with new things to see and ponder over. All you need to do is find the time to go. 

The best new London art exhibitions in May 2025

The home, migration, global displacement: these are all themes Do Ho Suh explores in his work, consisting of videos, drawings, and large translucent fabric installations of interiors, objects, walls and architectural structures. Often brightly coloured, skeletal and encompassing, this survey exhibition at Tate Modern will showcase three decades the celebrated Korean-born, London-based artist, including brand-new, site-specific works on display. 

‘The Genesis Exhibition – Do Ho Suh: Walk the House’ at Tate Modern is open from May 1 until October 26. More details here. 

2. ‘Fake Barn Country’ at Raven Row

Organised by three Londoners to reflect a ‘year of discussion’, this exhibition is set to explore the shared approaches and creative dialogues between a wide selection of artists. Featuring works that recall specific shows at Raven Row itself, the art you’ll see tends to play on realism, making use of found objects and reused materials – you might see everyday household items or DIY tools incorporated, for example. Expect to see works by artists including Terry Atkinson, Rachal Bradley and Andrea Büttner.

‘Fake Barn Country’ at Raven Row is open from May 8 until July 6. More details here.

3. ‘Encounters: Giacometti’ at Barbican

Swiss artist Alberto Giacometti was a bit of a big dawg when it came to post-WWII figurative sculpture: you might recognise his creepily elongated human figures with stretched-out limbs and wiry arms, which seem lonely, fragile, alien. Often mediating on existential themes about the human psyche, and leaning into surrealist and cubist styles, he had a huge influence on artists working with the human form. This show at Barbican is a three-part series showcasing contemporary sculptors alongside his historic works, launching in May with an exhibition of works by Huma Bhabha, followed by Mona Hatoum in September and Lynda Benglis in February 2026. 

‘Encounters: Giacometti’ at Barbican is open from May 8 2025 until May 24 2026. More details here.

Japan’s Edo period – from 1603 to 1868 – is thought to have been mostly a time of civic peace and development, allowing new art forms to flourish. In the later part of that era, Utagawa Hiroshige produced thousands of prints capturing the landscape, nature and daily life and became one of the country’s most celebrated artists. This new exhibition at the British Museum offers a rare chance to see his never-before-seen works up close (this is the the first exhibition of his work in London for a quarter of a century), spanning Hiroshige’s 40-year career via prints, paintings, books and sketches.

‘Hiroshige: Artist of the Open Road’ at British Museum is open from May 1 until September 7. More details here.

The National Gallery is celebrating its 200th birthday, and to celebrate, they’ve gone and refurbished their Sainsbury Wing, which has been closed for two years and houses some absolute gems of art history: Byzantine altarpieces, early renaissance works and Paolo Uccello’s three-part war scene epic ‘The Battle of San Romano’. The refurbed wing will include a whole room dedicated to the theme of gold and all the entire National Gallery collection is also going to be rehung. Talk about fresh.  

The National Gallery’s Sainsbury Wing is reopening on May 10. More details here.

Not quite an exhibition, but an opening no less: this year marks the 10th anniversary of Photo London, the annual photo fair taking over Somerset House with galleries and exhibitors travelling from New York, Istanbul, Amsterdam, and Hsinchu City to bring some of the hottest photography talents of the world right now, from the documentary to editorial, experimental and everything in between. This year features work from photographers like David Bailey, Antony Cairns, Jamie Hawkesworth and Joy Gregory.

Photo London at Somerset House is open from May 15 until May 18. More details here. 

7. ‘Leonardo Drew: Ubiquity II’ at South London Gallery 

Leonardo Drew’s works are silent, but they may as well be loud: they’re explosive, chaotic, large-scale installations that look like you’re witnessing the aftermath of an earthquake. The American artist is taking over South London gallery for his first London solo show with a site-specific work in the main gallery, made with intentionally distressed wood which looks like it’s ‘been through extreme weather events’. Oh, and it’s free. 

‘Leonardo Drew: Ubiquity II’ at South London Gallery is open May 30 until September 7 2025. More details here.

Recommended: the 10 best art exhibitions on right now, according to our critics.

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