Tabish Khan, the @LondonArtCritic, picks his top 5 museum exhibitions to see in London. If you are looking for more exhibitions, check out his previous top 5.
Chiharu Shiota: Threads of Life and Yin Xiuzhen: Heart to Heart at Hayward Gallery
Both of these exhibitions look spectacular, but they also convey powerful ideas. Shiota’s beds and suspended keys immerse you in a dream world and ask us to contemplate the histories behind these objects. What doors do they unlock? While Xiuzhen’s work, made from repurposed clothing, asks us about the nature of migration, travel, and how interconnected we’ve become. Until 3rd May, ticketed.
Beatriz González at Barbican Art Gallery
I knew very little about Beatriz Gonzalez, and I was blown away by her creativity and inventiveness. Recreating famous artworks on tiles, textiles, and even furniture, she used anything and everything she could get her hands on to create art, often working from postcards and books rather than first-hand experience of the works. There are playful elements as well as deeply political works, including artworks that reference victims of femicide and displaced persons. She died just before the exhibition opened, and it’s a chance to see work by an artist who deserves to be better known in the UK. Until 10th May, ticketed.
Samurai at The British Museum
This exhibition features plenty of fearsome armour, but it also explores the famed code of honour and the rise and fall of the Samurai class. However, it also discusses the Samurai’s roles in peacetime as administrators and artists. The big surprise is how many female Samurai there were, something many visitors won’t be aware of. Plus, there’s plenty of pop culture references, from Shogun to Star Wars. Until 4th May, ticketed.
Kindred: The Loneliness of Suffering and the Community of Lived Experience at Bethlem Museum of the Mind
This important exhibition is filled with artists who’ve struggled with mental health, including paintings of difficult times and the awkward postures of those at group therapy sessions. Tracie Hodge’s work asks, ‘Talk to me, don’t just medicate me,’ placed atop a roll call of medicines, while Annabel Merrett examines the well-meaning language from loved ones that is often of little help. It’s another strong exhibition from a museum that deserves a lot more visitors. Until 20th June.
Wright of Derby: From the Shadows at The National Gallery
I’ve always been a fan of his dramatic ‘An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump’, but this exhibition places his work in the broader context of the scientific discoveries of his time and his wider body of work. We see his prints and objects featured in his work, including an orrery and a gladiator sculpture. We also see his playful side in a painting of two boys fighting over a pig’s bladder, as well as his inspirations from Caravaggio and Rembrandt. Until 10th May, ticketed.
Shiota image: Photo by Masanobu Nishino and courtesy of the artist, © DACS, London, 2025 and Chiharu Shiota. Barbican image: Photo: David Parry © Beatriz González. Samurai image: © The Trustees of the British Museum. Bethlem Museum image, courtesy of the museum. Wright of Derby image: © Derby Museums.
