The art world really loves to take the summer off. If you’re expecting to see exciting new exhibitions in August, prepare for disappointment. But July still has some new art surprises up its billowing sleeve. The month features big installation art, political invective, pioneering feminism, quiet landscapes and even a cave. Something for everyone, then.
Six new London art exhibitions in July
Dominique White: ‘Deadweight’ at Whitechapel Gallery
Four huge new sculptures, inspired by ideas of the sea and creating worlds of Blackness, take centre stage in Dominique White’s show. The whole thing is the result of a White winning the Max Mara Art Prize and spending six months on a residency in Italy, where she submerged these works in the Mediterranean. Big, clever, salty art: brine and brawn.
Dominique White: ‘Deadweight’ is at Whitechapel Gallery, Jul 2-Sep 15. Free. More details here.
Penny Slinger: ‘Exorcism: Inside Out’ at Richard Saltoun Gallery
Pioneering feminist artist Penny Slinger is wrapping Richard Saltoun Gallery in images for this ambitious new show. It’s based on a book of the same name that was meant to come out in the 1970s, but was withheld after Slinger’s previous book ‘Mountain Ecstasy’ was seized and burned by British customs for being deemed pornographic.
Penny Slinger: ‘Exorcism: Inside Out’ at Richard Saltoun Gallery, Jul 3-Sep 7. Free. More details here.
Lonnie Holley: ‘All Rendered Truth’ at Camden Art Centre
You might have seen Lonnie Holley in the Royal Academy’s ‘Souls Grown Deep’ exhibition of art by Black artists from southeastern America last year. Now he’s getting a whole show to himself at Camden Art Centre and filling it with new works on canvas and found material sculptures made at The Mahler and LeWitt Studios in Italy in 2023.
Lonnie Holley: ‘All Rendered Truth’ is at Camden Art Centre, Jul 5-Sep 15. Free. More details here.
Goshka Macuga at London Mithraeum Bloomberg Space
Turner Prize-nominated Polish artist Goshka Macuga is taking over Bloomberg’s Temple of Mithras to create a cave, filled with stalactites and stalagmites, meant to evoke memories of ancient Roman Britain. The whole thing is an exploration of birth and rebirth, generative and destructive powers, and a great place to age your cheeses or keep your wines.
Goshka Macuga is at London Mithraeum Bloomberg Space, Jul 9-Jan 18 2025. Free. More details here.
Minoru Nomata: ‘Continuum’ at White Cube
Ultra-quiet, meditative, surreal paintings of humanless buildings are Japanese artist Minoru Nomata’s speciality. This new show features depictions of solitary structures reaching up to the heavens. Weird, eerie beauty.
Minoru Nomata is at White Cube, Jul 10-Aug 24. Free. More details here.
Peter Kennard: ’Archive of Descent‘ at Whitechapel Gallery
Kennard has created some of the most famous anti-war imagery ever, using the process of photomontage – a form of collage – to decry nuclear proliferation and international conflict. Now, the Whitechapel is looking back at his career of standing up to authority, kicking back against the man and sticking the boot in with this archival retrospective.
Peter Kennard: ’Archive of Descent‘ is at Whitechapel Gallery, Jul 23-Jan 19 2025. Free. More details here.
Want more? Here are the top ten exhibitions in London.