A new major exhibition at Tate Modern looks at Andy Warhol from his childhood in Pittsburgh through to his one of his final works. It's a fresh look at the extraordinary life and work of the pop art superstar and offers a rare personal insight into how Warhol and his work marked a period of cultural transformation. Featuring over 100 works, the exhibition shows how this … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Special Exhibition Report – Andy Warhol at Tate Modern
About Laura Porter
Florence Nightingale in 200 Objects, People and Places – New Special Exhibition at the Florence Nightingale Museum
Florence Nightingale (12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was born in Florence, Italy, to a wealthy British family. In her bicentenary year, London's Florence Nightingale Museum is celebrating the life and legacy of the lesser-known aspects of her life with a special exhibition. The museum tells the story of this deeply religious woman who broke social conventions. Nightingale in … [Read more...] about Florence Nightingale in 200 Objects, People and Places – New Special Exhibition at the Florence Nightingale Museum
London’s Non-Free Museums: Your Guide to London’s Museums That Charge Admission
While London has many fantastic free museums and galleries there are some that have an admission charge. This list is by no means exhaustive but these are the ‘pay for’ London museums we would like to highlight. We’ve tried to focus on the best museums and have avoided listing common tourist traps. When you have to pay to get into a museum, especially in London where most … [Read more...] about London’s Non-Free Museums: Your Guide to London’s Museums That Charge Admission
Exhibition Report: David Hockney – Drawing from Life at the National Portrait Gallery
There's a new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery featuring one of the most influential British artists of the 20th century. David Hockney: Drawing from Life is the first major exhibition devoted to David Hockney's drawings in over twenty years. There are around 150 works from public and private collections on display. The exhibition traces the trajectory of his … [Read more...] about Exhibition Report: David Hockney – Drawing from Life at the National Portrait Gallery
Special Exhibition Report: Viewing the Armada Portraits at Queen’s House in Greenwich – Faces of a Queen and The Woburn Treasures
For the first time ever the three surviving versions of the Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I are on display together in the Queen’s House in Greenwich (13 February – 31 August 2020). And a major collaboration with Woburn Abbey means even more significant works from their private art collection are on display in Greenwich too. If you do one special exhibition in Britain this year, … [Read more...] about Special Exhibition Report: Viewing the Armada Portraits at Queen’s House in Greenwich – Faces of a Queen and The Woburn Treasures
Exhibition Report: Meet Vincent van Gogh in London
From 7 February to 21 May 2020, the award-winning Meet Vincent van Gogh Experience is on display on London’s South Bank. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam has found a new approach with this touring 3D experience. The museum's collection is quite small and vulnerable so this idea makes art accessible to a wider audience. It's an interactive and multi-sensory experience that … [Read more...] about Exhibition Report: Meet Vincent van Gogh in London
Laura’s London: Exploring Lambeth Palace Library
Lambeth Palace Library has been kept within Lambeth Palace for 400 years, but things are changing as a new Library is currently under construction. ABOUT LAMBETH PALACE Across the river Thames from the Houses of Parliament (Palace of Westminster), Lambeth Palace is a working palace and for over 800 years has been the Archbishop of Canterbury's residence. In 1197 land was … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Exploring Lambeth Palace Library
Exhibition Report: George IV – Art and Spectacle at The Queen’s Gallery
A new exhibition at the Queen's Gallery, Buckingham Palace, looks at a king who collected and commissioned many of the finest works of art in the Royal Collection. George IV: Art and Spectacle makes it clear he was a patron of the arts and while he didn't hold back on the spending, he did have good taste. This is the official state portrait of George IV by Sir Thomas Lawrence, … [Read more...] about Exhibition Report: George IV – Art and Spectacle at The Queen’s Gallery
Exhibition Report: The New Hidden London Exhibition at the London Transport Museum
I'm fortunate to have been on all of the London Transport Museum 'Hidden London' tours of disused stations and tunnels but not everyone has had that opportunity. The tours are only available on certain dates (not all year round), and the (sometimes) long climbs may have put you off. Some say the tours are expensive (I think they are exceptional value) and also, children can't … [Read more...] about Exhibition Report: The New Hidden London Exhibition at the London Transport Museum
Exploring London Mercantile History at the Lloyd’s Register Building
While you may have seen the Lloyd's of London building in the City of London designed by Richard Rogers, do you know about the Collcutt building? As part of Heritage Open Days, I went to visit the Lloyd's Register building on Fenchurch Street. Designed by Thomas Collcutt, this late-Victorian office opened in 1901 as a statement building and a sign of prosperity. Lloyd's … [Read more...] about Exploring London Mercantile History at the Lloyd’s Register Building
Buckingham Palace Summer Opening Report: Queen Victoria’s Palace at the annual opening of the Buckingham Palace State Rooms
While the Queen takes a summer break in Scotland, we can tour the State Rooms of Buckingham Palace for the annual ten-week summer opening. This year the rooms are available to us from 20 July to 29 September 2019, and the special exhibition marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Queen Victoria. 'Queen Victoria's Palace' tells the story of how the young monarch turned an … [Read more...] about Buckingham Palace Summer Opening Report: Queen Victoria’s Palace at the annual opening of the Buckingham Palace State Rooms
Exhibition Report: The Moon – 50th Anniversary Apollo Exhibition at National Maritime Museum in Greenwich
To celebrate 50 years since NASA's Apollo 11 mission landed the first humans on the Moon, the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich is staging the UK's biggest exhibition dedicated to Earth's nearest celestial neighbour. The Moon is open from 19 July 2019 and charts the cultural and scientific story of our relationship with the moon through over 180 objects, including artefacts … [Read more...] about Exhibition Report: The Moon – 50th Anniversary Apollo Exhibition at National Maritime Museum in Greenwich
London Exhibition Report: Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing – Blockbuster New Exhibition at Buckingham Palace
Marking the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, this exhibition at the Queen's Gallery, Buckingham Palace, brings together more than 200 of the Renaissance master's greatest drawings in the Royal Collection. As the Royal Collection has more drawings by Leonardo da Vinci than any other Renaissance artist, it forms the largest exhibition of his work in over 65 … [Read more...] about London Exhibition Report: Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing – Blockbuster New Exhibition at Buckingham Palace
Exhibition Report: The New Secret Rivers Exhibition at the Museum of London Docklands
The latest free exhibition at the Museum of London Docklands is Secret Rivers. Open from 24 May to 27 October 2019, it combines art and archaeology with mudlarking, photography, film and much more to uncover the mysteries of London's rivers – both those that flow above ground and those that have been buried beneath our feet. A large wall map shows us the routes of the hidden … [Read more...] about Exhibition Report: The New Secret Rivers Exhibition at the Museum of London Docklands
London Exhibition Report: A Look at the Blockbuster Queen Victoria 200th Anniversary Exhibition at Kensington Palace
24 May 2019 is the 200th anniversary of Queen Victoria's birth at Kensington Palace. To mark the bicentenary of this historic event there is a new visitor route, Victoria: A Royal Childhood, through the suite of rooms she would have known well. And over in the Palace's Pigott Gallery, there is a new temporary exhibition, Victoria: Woman and Crown, that considers the private … [Read more...] about London Exhibition Report: A Look at the Blockbuster Queen Victoria 200th Anniversary Exhibition at Kensington Palace
Laura’s London: Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition – The Design Museum – Our Review – Is It Worth Going?
Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition has opened at The Design Museum in Kensington and is on until 15 September 2019. A global touring exhibition which started its journey in 2004, has at last reached London where so many of Kubrick's movies were filmed. Marking the 20th anniversary of Stanley Kubrick’s death, the exhibition explores his unique command of the whole creative … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition – The Design Museum – Our Review – Is It Worth Going?
Laura’s London: Van Gogh and Britain – Landmark New Exhibtion at Tate Britain – Full Report
This major exhibition at Tate Britain focuses on the time Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) spent in Britain between 1873 and 1876 when he was in his early twenties. He explored the (then) largest city in the world a decade before he became an artist. The exhibition is able to look at the artist's relationship with Britain and explores how Van Gogh was inspired by British art, … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Van Gogh and Britain – Landmark New Exhibtion at Tate Britain – Full Report
Laura’s London: Swinging London – A Lifestyle Revolution – New Exhibition Review
The Fashion and Textile Museum, near London Bridge, has a new exhibition about 'Swinging London' for spring 2019. It looks at a truly innovative era in London's history, exploring the origins of Pop culture and how fashion, music and art were used to demand and effect societal change in the years that followed. London-born designers, Mary Quant and Terence Conran are now in … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Swinging London – A Lifestyle Revolution – New Exhibition Review
Laura’s London: Take a First Look at the Beautiful Restored Painted Hall in Greenwich – Re-opening in March!
Editor's Note: We have a real treat this week - Laura was given an exclusive tour of the newly restored Painted Hall in Greenwich before its re-opening so we're chuffed to bits that she's written up a huge report about it. Please consider subscribing to the Londontopia Magazine as it allows us to commission great articles like this. As reported here recently, The Painted … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Take a First Look at the Beautiful Restored Painted Hall in Greenwich – Re-opening in March!
New in London: Mariage Frères Elegant Tea Room and Museum is Now Open in Covent Garden – We Send Laura Porter to Check it Out!
The world's most exclusive purveyor of luxury teas and France's oldest tea house, Mariage Frères, has opened its first UK tea emporium in Covent Garden. In addition to being a new tea house in London, it also contains a small museum dedicated to tea. I've been waiting for this one as it was supposed to open in September 2018 but, due to delays with its heritage building, … [Read more...] about New in London: Mariage Frères Elegant Tea Room and Museum is Now Open in Covent Garden – We Send Laura Porter to Check it Out!
Laura’s London: Four New Permanent Galleries at the National Maritime Museum – Here’s Our First Look!
Following a major £12.6M redevelopment project, The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich has new permanent galleries open from 20 September 2018. 1,000m2 of space in the Museum's East Wing, previously closed to visitors, has been converted to public use adding an additional 40% of gallery space. And just like the rest of the Museum, these galleries are free to visit. The … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Four New Permanent Galleries at the National Maritime Museum – Here’s Our First Look!
Laura’s London: A Look at the Courtauld Impressionists at The National Gallery – From Manet to Cézanne
For the first time in London for 70 years, the National Gallery is displaying major Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masterworks from the Courtauld Gallery, purchased in the 1920s by Samuel Courtauld (1876–1947). These are shown alongside paintings from the National Gallery's own collection which the businessman and philanthropist financed and helped acquire. Courtauld … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: A Look at the Courtauld Impressionists at The National Gallery – From Manet to Cézanne
The Best of Free London: The Best Free Museums in London
One of the greatest things about London is that most of the museums are free. Government funding and charitable donations ensure that many of London’s best musuems are obligated to keep entry to the general public free (but they can charge extra for special exhibitions). This makes many of the museums more accessible to those who many not be able to afford a trip to the museum. … [Read more...] about The Best of Free London: The Best Free Museums in London
Exhibition Alert: Laura Visits the 2018 Summer Opening of Buckingham Palace – Prince Charles’s Favorites in the Royal Collection
For ten weeks each summer we get to go inside Buckingham Palace and see the State Rooms while the Queen is away at Balmoral (Scotland). There's also a special exhibition included and this year, to mark the 70th birthday of The Prince of Wales, the Summer Opening of Buckingham Palace includes a special display of over 100 works of art personally selected by His Royal … [Read more...] about Exhibition Alert: Laura Visits the 2018 Summer Opening of Buckingham Palace – Prince Charles’s Favorites in the Royal Collection
Voice & Vote – Women’s Place in Parliament Exhibition at the Palace of Westminster
I hope you saw The London Annual 2018 as I had a feature in the magazine about Vote 100 marking the centenary of the Representation of the People Act 1918 which gave most men and some women the vote for the first time. There have been events all year to celebrate this 100 year anniversary but as this is about the right to vote it's fitting that the one you should really want … [Read more...] about Voice & Vote – Women’s Place in Parliament Exhibition at the Palace of Westminster
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