London’s best summer exhibitions 2025

From multi-media retrospectives to classical landscape painting and photography capturing music icons of the day, the breadth of exhibitions taking place across the capital this summer reflects the diversity of the city’s art scene. Transportive collections take you from post-war London to 19^th century rural Mexico and everywhere else in between. Narrowing down what to see is the hard part – which is why we’ve rounded up our top picks for the weeks ahead.

Grayson Perry: Delusions of Grandeur – Wallace Collection

For its largest ever contemporary exhibition to date, the Wallace Collection has turned the spotlight on Grayson Perry. Interrogating the act of making and collecting art, as well as the role of perfectionism and authenticity, the retrospective spans various media – from ceramics to tapestries, paintings and digitally created images. Some pieces took thousands of hours to complete, while others were made with the click of a button, prompting us to consider: which artworks do we value more, and why? There are elements of escapism, too, woven through featured works by ‘outsider artists’ Aloïse Corbaz and Madge Gill.

Until 26 October

Flowers: Flora in Contemporary Art & Culture – Saatchi Gallery

An apt summer exhibition, this flora themed show celebrates the timeless beauty and cultural significance of flowers through contemporary artwork. Immersive, interactive and family-friendly, it spans nine principal galleries where flowers are represented in large-scale installations, photography, fashion, archival objects and graphic design. In one striking display, artist Rebecca Louise Law fills an entire room with 100,000 dried flowers suspended from the ceiling, creating a completely sensory experience. Another highlight, Miguel Chevalier’s digital installation, adds an interactive element.

Until 31 August

Dennis Morris: Music + Life – The Photographers’ Gallery

Tucked away down an unassuming side street in Soho, The Photographers’ Gallery is currently exhibiting the work of British Jamaican photographer Dennis Morris. Best known for his candid portraits of cultural icons such as Bob Marley and the Sex Pistols, Morris’s images offer a powerful visual record of evolving cultural landscapes in Britain and beyond. Throughout, he captures defining moments in the reggae and punk musical movements, photographing icons at their most unguarded. Beyond these standout portraits, Music + Life also showcases Morris’s early documentary work, turning the lens on life in the multicultural neighbourhoods of post-war London.

Until 28 September

José María Velasco: A View of Mexico – The National Gallery

Schooled not only in fine art but geology, archaeology and botany, 19^th century Mexican painter José María Velasco’s scientific background informed his artistic practice – as this first of its kind exhibition at the National Gallery demonstrates. Keenly aware of his country’s growing industrialisation, Velasco’s landscape paintings capture expanding train lines and factories alongside botanically accurate studies and detailed depictions of rocks and volcanos set within the Valley of Mexico, the home of modern-day Mexico City.

Until 17 August

Summer Exhibition 2025 – Royal Academy of Arts

There’s still time to catch the Royal Academy of Arts flagship annual open-submission exhibition – held every year since 1769. For its 257^th instalment, 1,700 pieces by emerging and established artists alike adorn the walls and hang from the ceilings – among them British artist Alice Channer’s dramatic six-metre-tall display of ostrich features and steel chain. Another eye-catching exhibit by Brazilian Antonio Tarsis consists of a seven-metre-wide wall made from deconstructed matchboxes. On the smaller scale, prints, photography and paintings are also on show – and for sale – with proceeds donated towards training the Royal Academy Schools’ next generation of artists.

Until 17 August

Emily Kam Kngwarray – Tate Modern

Vibrant batiks and monumental paintings on canvas are among the evocative body of artwork brought together in this retrospective – the first large-scale presentation of Australian artist Emily Kam Kngwarray to be held in Europe. Transportive and powerful, the works take you to the Sandover region of the Northern Territory of Australia and embody Kngwarray’s deep cultural connection to ancestral lands, skies and waters. Richly layered, reoccurring motifs represent the plants, animals and geological features that formed the desert ecosystems the late artist lived alongside.

Until 11 January