Tucked away at the western edge of central Hyde Park, the twin Serpentine galleries are a hot spot for some of the best contemporary art.
The North and South galleries in Kensington Gardens both offer a rolling two-monthly programme of exhibitions.
Coming up in March and April, the galleries will welcome two pioneering artists, Arpita Singh and Giuseppe Penone.
At Serpentine North, from March 20 to July 27, Ms Singh will present her first solo show outside of India.
Born in Kolkota in 1937, Ms Singh emerged in the 1960s, developing a painting practice that blends figuration and Surrealism.
She combined this with periods of abstraction, using pen, ink and pastels to create layers and textures.
From the 1990s, Ms Singh increasingly explored themes of gender, motherhood and vulnerability, alongside metaphors of violence and political unrest in India.
Her exhibition at the Serpentine, Remembering, will chart key works from across six decades of her career, from large-scale oil paintings to intimate watercolours and ink drawings.
Endless experimentation with colour as well as exploration of social upheaval and international humanitarian crises, will be revealed for all to see across the galleries walls.
Ms Singh said: “Remembering draws from old memories from which these works emerged. Whether I am aware or not, there is something happening at my core. It is how my life flows.
“Serpentine is a known and well-established gallery. To have a solo show there is a pleasure, honour, and surprise to me.”
Over at Serpentine South, Giuseppe Penone’s Thoughts in the Roots will open on April 3 to run until September.
Born in Garessio, a village near Cuneo, Italy, Penone is influenced by the forested region of Northern Italy.
The area is a central subject in his work, creating his first Alberi (Trees) in 1969.
Working across a range of materials, including wood, iron, wax, bronze, terracotta, and plaster, Mr Penone’s art focuses on the constantly evolving relationship between humans and the natural world.
A leading figure in the Arte Povera movement, his exhibition Thoughts in the Roots, will feature sculptures and works on paper from 1977 to today.
He said: “To breathe the perfume of the leaves that cover the walls of the environment, to inhale the fragrance of the resin extracted from the trees and poured into an empty tree trunk, these are actions that allow us to perceive the space of Serpentine as a continuum with the nature of the park that surrounds it.
“All of my work is a trail to express my adherence and belonging to nature, and it is with this thought that I have chosen the works of the exhibition.
“The two paths that I have created, inside the gallery and outside of it, in the park, become two integrated gardens.”
To find out more visit: https://www.serpentinegalleries.org/about/press/arpita-singh-remembering/
Pictured top: Arpita Singh, My Lollipop City: Gemini Rising, 2005, Vadehra Art Gallery (Picture: Arpita Singh)