Whitechapel Gallery
An East End engine for new art since 1901, Whitechapel Gallery pairs risk-taking shows with community energy. Expect punchy, idea-led exhibitions across a compact set of rooms, excellent writing on the walls, and one of London’s deadliest art bookshops. It’s easy to do in 60–90 minutes; linger if the talks or films are on. Pay-what-you-can tickets appear for some headline shows, while much of the programme is free.
Opening Hours
What's not to miss inside?
Historic Foyer & Façade
Edwardian welcome with quirky detailsLook up: the copper leaves and the cupola’s weather vane (Erasmus riding backwards, by Rodney Graham) quietly signal the gallery’s wit.
📍 Street entrance on Whitechapel High St
Flagship Exhibition
The big thesis showFrom global retrospectives to urgent group shows, this is where the argument lands—briskly curated and readable.
📍 Ground-floor main galleries
Archive & Community Rooms
Local voices, long memoryArtist projects sit beside education and archive displays, keeping the gallery plugged into its neighbourhood.
📍 Upper floors
Bookshop + Café
Thinking extends beyond the galleriesA compact, dangerous selection of photobooks, criticism and artist zines; the café bleeds into public space, so conversations spill over.
📍 Front of house and lower level
Inspire your Friends
- Picasso’s ‘Guernica’ was shown here in 1939 to raise funds for Spanish war relief—East End queues wrapped around the block.
- The 1956 exhibition ‘This Is Tomorrow’ helped launch British Pop Art, with Richard Hamilton’s now-iconic collage debuting in the show’s orbit.
- Whitechapel gave Mark Rothko his first UK exhibition (1961) and staged an early Jackson Pollock memorial show (1958–59), decades before these painters were household names here.
- The 2009 expansion stitched the gallery to the former Passmore Edwards Library next door—renewing a century-old link between art, books and the local public.
