All contemporary art museums to visit in London

Experience the cutting-edge world of contemporary art at 23 museums in London. These museums showcase works by modern artists, exploring current themes and innovative techniques.

Are you a fan of contemporary art? These are the best contemporary art museums in London:

  1. Victoria and Albert Museum1

    Victoria and Albert Museum

     London
    The Victoria and Albert Museum holds the largest design and decorative art collection in the world, with over 2.27 million objects. The museum houses collections that span 5,000 years of art, from ancient times to the present day. Through these collections, visitors explore historical and contempora
  2. Tate Britain2

    Tate Britain

     London
    Tate is a collective name for the National Gallery of British and modern art in England. It comprises four museums: Tate Britain, which was opened in 1897 and was previously known as the Tate Gallery; Tate Liverpool, which was opened in 1988; Tate St. Ives, which was opened in 1993; and Tate Modern, which was opened in 2000. In addition to these physical locations, there is also Tate Online, a website created in 1998 that encompasses all the Tate museums.
  3. Tate Modern3

    Tate Modern

     London
    Tate Modern is one of the largest modern and contemporary art galleries in the world, housed in a former power station built between 1947 and 1963 that was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott. Tate (Modern) holds the national collection of British art from 1900 until today as well as international m
  4. Saatchi Gallery4

    Saatchi Gallery

     London
    The Saatchi Gallery is a gallery for contemporary art in London that showcases works by young artists or by established international artists whose work is rarely seen in the UK. Because of this the Saatchi Gallery has provided a springboard to launch careers of these lesser-known artists.
  5. Old Royal Naval College5

    Old Royal Naval College

     London
    KIDS GO FREE! Discover the Painted Hall, one of the most iconic sights in London, located at the heart of the Maritime Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site. An awe-inspiring artwork covering more than 3,700m walls and ceiling recounting tales of kings and queens alongside mythological, historical,
  6. Wellcome Collection6

    Wellcome Collection

     London
    Wellcome Collection is a museum and library in London that aims to challenge how we all think and feel about health. The museum lets its visitors think deeply about the connections between science, medicine, life and art, by exhibiting an unusual mixture of medical artefacts and artworks. The perman
  7. The Foundling Museum7

    The Foundling Museum

     London
    The Foundling Museum tells the story of the Foundling Hospital, the first home for abandoned children established in Britain. The institution was opened in 1739 by the philanthropist Thomas Coram. The collection the museum holds includes paintings and sculptures by well-known British 18th-century ar
  8. The Queen's Gallery8

    The Queen's Gallery

     London
    The Queen's Gallery is a public art gallery that rotates pieces from the Royal Collection showcasing numerous exhibits such as paintings and jewelry. Around 450 works are on display at any one time. It is located at the west front of the Buckingham Palace and first opened in 1962. It underwent a rec
  9. Cartoon Museum9

    Cartoon Museum

     London
    The Cartoon Museum is a museum in London that is devoted to British cartoons, caricatures, and comic strips. The museum organizes temporary exhibitions with more than 250 pieces from the collection of over 1,700 original cartoons and prints.
  10. Fashion and Textile Museum10

    Fashion and Textile Museum

     London
    The Fashion and Textile Museum is housed in a converted warehouse and is a contemporary fashion museum that offers an ongoing programme of temporary displays.
  11. The Design Museum11

    The Design Museum

     London
    The Design Museum is dedicated to product, industrial, graphic, fashion and architectural design. The museum offers an introduction to the history of contemporary design with various permanent exhibitions and opportunities to explore the present and future of design through a programme of temporary
  12. 2 Willow Road12

    2 Willow Road

     London
    2 Willow Road (completed in 1939) houses treasures, furniture and objets d'art of Erno Goldfinger, one of the most influential figures in the British modern movement. Goldfinger lived here with his wife Ursula and their children until he passed away in 1987. Visitors can enjoy the collection of mode
  13. Pollock's Toy Museum13

    Pollock's Toy Museum

     London
    Pollock's Toy Museum is the UK's oldest toy museum housing over 7000 toys in 6 magical rooms across two historical buildings in the center of London. Here you will see a huge array of toys form all over the world and from different centuries, including a 4000 year out toy mouse and one of the worlds
  14. Online discount!Marianne North Gallery14

    Marianne North Gallery

     Richmond
    Marianne North Gallery is a museum in Kew. The museum features exhibits related to: fine art and natural sciences.
  15. Orleans House Gallery15

    Orleans House Gallery

     Twickenham
    Orleans House Gallery is a museum in Twickenham, Middlesex. The museum features exhibits related to Fine Art, Personalities, Photography, Costume and Textiles and Archives.
  16. Barbican Art Gallery16

    Barbican Art Gallery

     London
    Barbican Art Gallery presents major exhibitions by leading international figures, including a dynamic mix of architecture, design, fashion and photography.
  17. South London Gallery17

    South London Gallery

     London
    South London Gallery is a contemporary art gallery. The contemporary collection includes self-portraits by a range of artists, works relating to the local area and the South London Gallery's exhibitions programme. The South London Gallery’s historic art collection contains more than 5,000 paintings,
  18. Pitzhanger Manor House and Gallery18

    Pitzhanger Manor House and Gallery

     London
    From 1800 to 1804 Sir John Soane, one of Britain’s most influential architects, designed and built the Pitzhanger Manor House. The Pitzhanger Manor Gallery is a venue for contemporary art exhibits that presents three exhibitions a year of work by artists, designers and architects. Visitors can also
  19. Embankment Galleries at Somerset House19

    Embankment Galleries at Somerset House

     London
    The Embankment Galleries were originally a barrel-vaulted bargehouse linked directly to the Thames. It now serves as a modern and adaptable exhibition space. Spread over the ground floor and mezzanine level of the South Wing, it is host to annual exhibitions such as Photo London and the London Desig
  20. 20

    Heath Robinson Museum

     Pinner
    The only museum dedicated to the work of William Heath Robinson,illustrator, artist and cartoonist. Whether for his well known humorous drawings or his illustrations for Kipling, Shakespeare or children’s stories, he is integral to British cultural heritage. His name entered the language as early as
  21. 21

    UCL Art Museum

     London
    UCL Art Museum is a museum in London. The museum features exhibits related to Fine Art. Key themes, people and exhibits in the museum include Albrecht Durer, Apocalypse series, Anthony van Dyck, Iconographia, Joseph Wright of Derby, John Singer Sargent, Rembrandt van Rijn, Martin Schongauer, Hendric
  22. 22

    Centre for Recent Drawing - C4RD

     London
    Centre for Recent Drawing - C4RD is a museum space for drawing that was founded as an artist social practice project in 2004. Since then, C4RD has provided over a hundred public exhibitions, in addition to residencies, talks, projects, publications, and encouraged drawing production towards independ
  23. 23

    The Fleming Collection

     London
    A London-based gallery dedicated to supporting and promoting Scottish art.