An Artlyst guide to events happening in London this May: The National Gallery is hosting its first major exhibition dedicated to the Spanish master, Zurbarán. Photo London is moving to Olympia, and this is your last opportunity to see the exhibition on Nigerian Modernism at Tate Modern, as well as the Seurat exhibition at The Courtauld.
Exhibitions Opening
Francisco de Zurbarán, Hercules and Cerberus, 1634, Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid
© Photographic Archive Museo Nacional del Prado
Zurbarán, 2 May – 23 August 2026 National Gallery
The first major monographic exhibition in the UK devoted to Francisco de Zurbarán (1598–1664) will open at the National Gallery next spring. This exhibition is the first dedicated presentation of the artist’s paintings at the National Gallery since 1994. The exhibition of almost 50 paintings will span the chronological and iconographic breadth of the artist’s career, and unite exceptional works from the collection of the National Gallery with paintings from the Musée du Louvre (Saint Bonaventure on His Bier and Saint Apollonia) and the Art Institute of Chicago (The Crucifixion, Saint Romanus of Antioch and Saint Barulas ), the two partner museums to which the exhibition will travel between October 2026 and June 2027.
£20 (off-peak, Sunday-Thursday)
£22 (Friday and Saturday)*
Under 18s go free
* Includes every day in the first two weeks of the exhibition.
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AH XIAN, China/Australia b.1960, China China – Bust no.3 1998
Rising Voices: Contemporary Art from Asia, Australia and the Pacific, Opens 16 May 2026 V&A South Kensington
Rising Voices: Contemporary art from Asia, Australia and the Pacific presents the work of 40 leading artists in a landmark collaboration between the V&A and the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA), Brisbane. Drawing on more than 30 years of The Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT) exhibition series, the exhibition offers an unparalleled view of the region’s dynamic creative landscape. Foregrounding First Nations perspectives and diverse artistic approaches, the exhibition includes rare works by pioneering creatives—some never before seen outside the region. Combining traditional forms such as weaving, ceramics, jewellery and miniature painting with global contemporary practices, each object carries deep cultural significance, blending ancestral knowledge and contemporary experience through rich materials and symbolic expression. The exhibition will reveal how long-standing artistic traditions continue to evolve, reflecting the interconnected, ever-changing cultures of the Asia Pacific today.
£17
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James Abbott McNeill Whistler, Arrangement in Grey and Black No.1 1871
Musée d’Orsay, Paris, France
James McNeill Whistler, 21 May – 27 September 2026, Tate Britain
A truly global figure, Whistler re-wrote the rules of what it meant to be an artist. He pioneered new and innovative techniques, creating astonishingly beautiful, ethereal visions of modern life that would earn him a place as one of the most influential artists of the 19th and 20th centuries. This retrospective – the first major European exhibition of Whistler’s work in 30 years – brings together the artist’s world-famous paintings alongside rarely, or never seen, works. It includes exquisite portraits, drawings, prints, and designs, from as early as his teens in St. Petersburg to the enigmatic late self-portraits. The exhibition presents both a boldly experimental artist and cosmopolitan celebrity, disrupting the conventions of Victorian society in pursuit of truth, beauty, and progress.
£24
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Sir Winston Churchill, Cannes Harbour at Sunset C311, 1930s Private Collection © Churchill Heritage Ltd
Winston Churchill: The Painter, 23 May – 29 November 2026, The Wallace Collection
Universally renowned as an inspirational statesman, writer, orator and the man who led Britain to victory in the Second World War (1939-45), what is arguably less well known about Winston Churchill (1874-1965), was that he was also an enthusiastic amateur painter. In this major retrospective and first exhibition of Churchill’s creative oeuvre in the UK since his death, the Wallace Collection will bring together more than 50 paintings that represent the very best of the former Prime Minister’s output. Half of the loans are coming from private collections and have rarely, if ever, been seen before in public.
£20
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Art Fairs
Photo London 2026, Olympia
Photo London 2026, 14–17 May 2026 (Preview 13 May), Olympia in Kensington.
The move to Olympia marks a significant new phase for the Fair, providing an expanded setting for international galleries, exhibitions, curated sections and an enlarged publishing programme. The historic venue, currently undergoing a major redevelopment, offers the space to broaden the Fair’s programme while maintaining its focus on photography across artistic, documentary and experimental practices.
The 2026 edition brings together a strong international group of galleries and artists alongside new initiatives that deepen the Fair’s engagement with photography through exhibitions, film, publishing and collecting.
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London Original Print Fair 2026
London Original Print Fair, 14-17 May, Somerset House
Set within the beautiful historic galleries of Somerset House, the Fair offers an opportunity to explore the history and future of printmaking, and will also present a programme of talks and live demonstrations bringing together artists, curators, and collectors.
Spanning six centuries of art, LOPF 2026 brings together an extraordinary range of works. Where else can you encounter and buy prints by Rembrandt, Picasso, Harland Miller, Bridget Riley, Ken Kiff, Gavin Turk, Peter Doig, Ad Minoliti, and Barbara Rae, all under one roof?
£22
Affordable Art Fair Hampstead 2026
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Affordable Art Fair Hampstead, 6-10 May, Lower Fairground Site, Hampstead Heath, London NW3 1TH
Affordable Art Fair Hampstead Returns to the Heath with Inaugural Ceramics Exhibition, Al-Fresco Painting Workshops, and a Children’s Art Competition. Featuring over 100 contemporary galleries from across 18 countries, with 8 galleries exhibiting at the fair for the very first time
Headlining this year’s programme is Ceramics Unbound, a debut exhibition bringing together boundary-pushing ceramicists from the UK and beyond. Al-fresco painting workshops on the Heath invite visitors of all abilities to engage with the landscape that once inspired John Constable, while the Heath & Heart Children’s Art Competition celebrates the next generation of local talent. Family Mornings and Summer Lates return, promising something for everyone across the five-day fair.
£14
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Exhibitions Closing Soon
Decoración de iteriores (Interior Decoration) 1981. Tate. courtesy of ©Beatriz González. Photo: Tate
Beatriz González, Barbican Art Gallery, Closing 10 May
The first UK retrospective of the groundbreaking Colombian artist, Beatriz González, whose bold work explores the power and impact of the images we encounter every day.
£19
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Georges Seurat, Seascape at Port-au-Bessin, Normandy 1888, National Gallery of Art Washington DC
Seurat and the Sea, Courtauld Gallery, Closing 17 May
The Courtauld presents the first ever exhibition dedicated to the seascapes of the French artist Georges Seurat (1859–1891). This major, focused display will be the first devoted to Seurat in the UK in almost 30 years. It will chart the evolution of his radical and distinctive style through the recurring motif of the sea.
£20 advance booking required
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Read Nico Kos Earle’s Review Here
Wright of Derby: From The Shadows, National Gallery, Closing 10 May
‘Wright of Derby: From the Shadows’ is the first major exhibition dedicated to the British artist’s ‘candlelight’ paintings.
£10
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Nigerian Modernism,Tate Modern
Nigerian Modernism, Tate Modern, closing 10 May
Explore the artists who revolutionised modern art in Nigeria in the mid-20th century.
Set against the backdrop of cultural and artistic rebellion, Nigerian Modernism celebrates the achievements of Nigerian artists working before and after the decade of national independence from British colonial rule in 1960.
£20
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Read Revd Jonathan Evens’s Review Here
Sean Scully, Lisson Gallery
Sean Scully – the Nature of Art, Lisson Gallery, closing 9 May
Presenting Scully’s 2005 series of photographs from the island of Aran alongside two large-scale paintings and a huge salon-style array of drawings, watercolours, photos and written works on paper, this selection charts the landscape theme throughout his career, revealing how enmeshed the natural world remains to the artist’s ways of seeing and thinking.
Free
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Catherine Opie, National Portrait Gallerym, installation view ©Artlyst 2026
Catherine Opie: To Be Seen, NPG, closing 31 May
Catherine Opie: To Be Seen showcases photographic portraits by the American artist Catherine Opie. The exhibition, curated in collaboration with the artist, will be the first major museum exhibition of her work in the UK.
Opie’s work questions representations of home, intimacy and family, politics, identity and power structures.
£19.50 / £21.50 with donation
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Read Miranda Carroll’s Review Here
Gavin Turk, Ben Brown Fine Arts, closing 22 May
The exhibition showcases a new series of oil paintings depicting doors left ajar, each offering a glimpse into an ambiguous and surreal terrain beyond. Shown together, the works transform the gallery into a labyrinth of thresholds.
Free
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Sarah Morris,White Cube Mason’s Yard
Sarah Morris, White Cube Mason’s Yard, closing 9 May
The exhibition features a series of new paintings that examine global corporations alongside two films set in New York: her latest, Chris Rock (2025), focusing on the American comedian, and her first film, Midtown (1998).
Free
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