The best London art exhibitions: a guide for this weekend

Narrowing down your London art exhibitions must-see list is rarely easy, even in the quieter months on the art calendar. As spring enters full swing, stay up-to-date with our guide to the best London art shows in the city and around the UK in May 2023.

The best London art exhibitions to see in May 2023

Soojin Kang: ‘To Be You, Whoever You Are’
Gathering
Until 17 June 

In ‘To Be You, Whoever You Are’ at Gathering, Korean textile artist Soojin Kang has created a series of sculptural figures in which textiles – woven, knotted, wound and unwound – trace the vascular constructs of the body. In these curious sculptures, hand-dyed linen, jute and silk become the veins, bones and skins of figures – some busts, some full bodies, and some isolated parts – with fabric draped and wrapped around robust steel armatures. Staged across both floors of Gathering, the figures in the show are curiously ritualistic – are they themselves deities, or made to serve one? 

gathering.london

Maki Na Kamura
Michael Werner
Until 17 June

What can be found in Maki Na Kamura’s paintings? The Osaka-born, Berlin-based artist describes her work as ‘Caspar David Friedrich plus Hokusai minus Romanticism minus Japonisme’ - a complex recipe that reaps a singularly enthralling result. The reference points for her paintings, now on view in full effect at Michael Werner Gallery – are as broad as they are eclectic, from Millet and Dürer to K-pop; her vibrant canvases are charged with frenzied whirls of abstraction and figuration, seamlessly shifting between the two. 

michaelwerner.com

Isaac Julien: ‘What Freedom Is to Me’
Tate Britain
Until 20 August 2023

Artist and filmmaker Isaac Julien’s Tate Britain retrospective ‘What Freedom Is to Me’ questions histories, and explores activism, but is also full of joy and beauty. The retrospective covers 40 years of work specialising in film, photography and installation explores activism, selfhood, how we make histories, knowledge and Black and queer identity, with exhibition design by Adjaye Associates. 

tate.org.uk

Maisie Cousins: 'Walking Back To Happiness'
TJ Boulting
Until 17 June 2023

Inspired by her obsession with Blobbyland theme park, and formative childhood holidays, Maisie Cousins created Walking Back to Happiness, a nostalgic, unnerving and curious series of AI works showing at TJ Boulting gallery. Cousin's also recently staged a site-specific installation circling a sculpture in TJ Boulting's booth at Photo London. 

Writer: Sophie Gladstone

tjboulting.com

Antony Caro: ‘The Inspiration of Architecture’
Pitzhanger Manor
Until 10 September 2023

Antony Caro was, undoubtedly, a revolutionary in sculpture, subverting existing conventions in material, surface and form. He was also a master of the intersection, proving how art and architecture are not mutually exclusive entities. Caro’s relationship with architecture is now being explored at Pitzhanger Manor, London through 16 key works created between 1983–2013. The sculptures engage in a choreography of sorts with Sir John Soane’s building, notably in Caro’s inclusion of coloured Perspex, which echoes Soane’s epic use of stained glass. 

pitzhanger.org.uk

David Hockney: ‘Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)’
Lightroom
Until 4 June 2023

David Hockney’s ambitious, immersive art show in London transforms chapters of his creative life, iconic paintings, rarely-seen pieces and some newly created work into a multisensorial experience. Three years in the making, ‘David Hockney: Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away)’ is the launch show at Lightroom in King’s Cross, London. The four-storey-high space, designed by London architects Haworth Tompkins, is a joint venture between design studio 59 Productions and the London Theatre Company. 

lightroom.uk