London Art Exhibitions 2025: Must-See Shows and Hidden Gems

When it comes to London art exhibitions 2025, curated visual experiences across galleries, public spaces, and historic venues that reflect the city’s evolving creative pulse. Also known as London visual arts events, these shows aren’t just about hanging paintings—they’re about storytelling through fabric, paint, light, and space. This year, the city’s art scene is louder, more diverse, and more accessible than ever, blending high-end museum shows with raw, community-driven street projects.

One major thread running through 2025’s exhibitions is the rise of theatre design, the hidden art behind stage costumes, sets, and lighting that turns scripts into immersive worlds. Also known as performance design, this craft is getting its own spotlight at the V&A and National Theatre, where you can walk through full-scale stage environments and see how a single gown or prop carries decades of narrative weight. Then there’s street art London, large-scale murals and installations created by local and international artists in public spaces, often responding to social issues or neighborhood identity. Also known as public art London, this movement exploded in 2025 with the London Mural Festival, which added over 100 new pieces from Peckham to Hackney—no tickets needed, just walking shoes. These aren’t just decorations; they’re conversations painted on walls, telling stories of migration, loss, joy, and resistance.

You’ll also find art hidden in plain sight—inside historic gardens, behind the doors of private clubs, even in the design of London’s most talked-about interiors. The line between fine art and everyday life is blurring. A bouclé sofa in a Islington flat might be inspired by a textile exhibit at the Design Museum. A mural in Whitechapel echoes the same themes as a costume piece in a West End play. This isn’t coincidence—it’s culture moving as one.

What you’ll find below isn’t a list of must-see shows—it’s a map to the real, living art scene in London. From the quiet elegance of set design at the National Theatre to the bold chaos of a new mural in Shoreditch, these posts show you where the creativity is happening, who’s making it, and how to experience it without the crowds or the price tags. No fluff. Just where to go, what to look for, and why it matters right now.