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If one of your goals in 2026 is to become disgustingly well-cultured, Time Out is at your service. We’ve called upon our international network of editors and writers and rounded up all the exhibitions across the world that should be at the top of your list. Our guide includes Sydney’s huge biennale, Chicago’s Matisse retrospective and Tokyo’s celebration of Eric Carle, author of The Very Hungry Caterpillar. And, of course, as a city constantly at the forefront of culture, it would be a crime to write such a list without including any exhibitions that are coming up here in London.
One of the exhibitions we’re most looking forward to in 2026 is Tate Britain’s The 90s. The show is set to be pretty much exactly what it says on the tin. It’ll explore the ways in which subculture, rebellion and experimentation grew in the 1990s and will feature era-defining work spanning art, photography, fashion design and pop culture.
The show has been curated by none other than gamechanging former British Vogue editor Edward Enniful. During the nineties, he was the youngest ever fashion director at i-D magazine and regularly hung out with the likes of Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell. Expect to see iconic shots from photographers such as Juergen Teller and Nick Knight, legendary looks by the likes of Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen and Hussein Chalayan and groundbreaking pieces by artists including Damien Hirst, Gillian Wearing and Yinka Shonibare.
Tate Britain says of the exhibition: ‘As the Cold War ended and Britain began to emerge from recession, a new dawn of optimism, freedom, and rebellion was ushered in, epitomised by a new generation of diverse creative talent. This sense of boundless opportunity resulted in art, design, fashion and music fusing into one potent cultural force, signalling an audacious renewal of British spirit.
‘The exhibition explores how long-held hierarchies were dismantled, with high art and pop culture feeding into one another, and looks at the enduring influence of key figures who emerged from this time.’
The 90s opens at Tate Britain on October 6 and will run until February 2027. Until then, here are the top 10 London exhibitions that you can see right now.
The 19 biggest and best exhibitions worth travelling for in 2026.
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