Modern art finds its spiritual home at Tate Modern.
Ok, so we’re not exactly shy in bragging about London, but sometimes, things are simply worth the hype. Take Tate Modern, for example: the city’s leading art spot is also the most popular modern art gallery in the world. Which, surely, is something to shout about. Part of the Tate gallery family, which also includes Tate Britain, Tate Liverpool, and Tate St Ives, Tate Modern sits on a prime spot in Bankside, holds a repository of important and influential modern art, and won’t cost you a penny to enter. Let’s take a peek inside! (See also: all the best London art exhibitions in 2020.)
Tate Modern overview
Housed inside the imposing shell of the old Bankside Power Station, the Tate Modern is a relatively young art gallery. After a £134 million conversion, Tate Modern threw open its doors in 2000, and now generates a whole different kind of electricity. The gallery is London’s most-visited attraction, having recently overtaken the venerable British Museum; it pulls in a whopping 5.5 million visitors annually – which is roughly equal to the population of Finland.
Unlike Tate Britain, which houses a permanent collection of historic British art, Tate Modern is all about the here and now. Everything you’ll find within the gallery is modern art, dating only as far back as 1900. Collections are split between the Boiler House, the central Turbine Hall, and the Blavatnik Building (formerly known as the Switch House).
The oldest works are found in the Boiler House, whilst the Blavatnik Building – which only opened in 2016 – hosts art from 1960 onwards. Turbine Hall, which sits at the heart of Tate Modern, serves as the grand entrance and installation space for major art projects. Basically, wherever you turn in this place, you’re going to get a proper eyeful of art.
Things to see at Tate Modern
If you’re approaching Tate Modern from the river (which you most likely are), the first thing you’ll want to do is head downstairs. The cavernous room which unfolds before you is known as Turbine Hall, the centrepiece of Tate Modern. Once the housing for electricity generators, this five-storey tall space is now home to large-scale, specially commissioned art projects. Amongst the incredible installations to grace Turbine Hall include Carsten Höller’s giant slides, Ai Weiwei’s sea of porcelain sunflower seeds, and Olafur Eliasson‘s giant setting sun.
In more recent years, Turbine Hall has hosted a joyful set of swings from art collective Superflex, and Tania Bruguera’s 10,148,451 – a community-driven response to the global migration crisis, which also featured a heat-sensitive floor and a room designed to make you cry. The current residence is Kara Walker’s shark-infested fountain, which rebukes the evils of empire and the slave trade through a series of powerful sculptures. Turbine Hall projects run from October to March, so keep your eyes peeled for a new Turbine Hall installation arriving later this year.
Also on the ground floor, and just off to the side of Turbine Hall, is a space known as The Tanks. Three huge oil tanks have now been repurposed to display installation, video, and performance art, and the results tend to be a little more… out there than the rest of Tate Modern’s offerings. Witness ‘Coloured Sculpture’ (above), which took up residence in 2018, and was very accurately described as a “floating torture puppet” by one member of the Secret London team.
Away from the subterranean tanks, you’ll find some lighter fare on the upper levels. All the way up, in fact. Sitting on the tenth floor of the Blavatnik Building is the grandly titled Tate Modern Viewing Platform – which is exactly what it sounds like. Open air, and offering 360 degree views across the city, the viewing platform is a neat way to see city skyline views without paying a penny.
Current and upcoming Tate Modern exhibitions
Given its reputation as a world-leading art gallery, there are new and exciting art exhibitions arriving at Tate Modern throughout the year. Here are the highlights:
Nam June Paik: The Future Is Now
Open now, until February 9
An artist who worked at the bleeding edge of technology, Paik’s visual artistry manifests itself in robots made from old TV screens, video works, and room-filling installations. It’ll mess with your melon whilst raising questions about our relationship to technology. More information here.
Dora Maar
Open now, until March 15
Her trippy, surreal photomontages and her partnership with Picasso ensured her place in the art pantheon, and now Tate Modern hosts the largest ever UK retrospective of Dora Maar’s work. £13. More info.
Dóra Maurer
Open now, until July 5
The largest UK exhibition of Maurer’s works sees photographs, films, paintings, and graphic works combined – yet all feature the artist’s trademark playfulness. Free! More info.
Steve McQueen
February 12, until May 10
Though now better known as an Oscar winning-filmmaker, McQueen’s art career has been a pretty groundbreaking affair: this exhibition collates his immersive video installations, as well as premiering new work. £13. More information here.
Andy Warhol
March 12, until September 6
An early contender for 2020’s must-see exhibition, the unforgettable Pop Art of Andy Warhol goes on display in a major show, with his famed images of Marilyn Monroe and Campell’s Soup Cans amongst the highlights. Throw in some largely unseen paintings from the 1970s, and his work in experimental media forms, and you’ve got one of the hottest tickets in town. £22. More info.
BMW Tate Live Exhibition
March 20, until March 29
A short-run exhibition which nonetheless packs a punch, Faustin Linyekula, Okwui Okpokwasili and Tanya Lukin Linklater take over the tanks at Tate Modern for a history-focused display. Price TBD. More info.
Zanele Muholi
April 29, until October 18
Mixing intimate photographs and engaging self-portraits, Zanele Muholi’s work explores stoicism and expression in the face of prejudice, intolerance, and violence. Price TBD. More info.
Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Rooms
May 11, until May 9, 2021
The mesmerising mirrored rooms of Yayoi Kusama make a triumphant return to town this spring, as Tate Modern hosts a pair of delightfully trippy installations. Price TBD. Read all about it here.
Magdalena Abakanowicz
June 17, until September 13
Part textiles, part sculptures; whatever Magdalena Abakanowicz’s ‘Abakans’ are, they’re certainly impressive. Filling Tate Modern’s Blavatnik Gallery, these imposing pieces will be hung from the ceiling. Price TBD. More info.
Bruce Nauman
October 6, until January 17, 2021
Using everything from sound, to neon, to holograms, Bruce Nauman creates hyper-modern works that test the boundaries of modern art. Price TBD. More info.
The EY Exhibition: Rodin
October 21, until February 21, 2021
Auguste Rodin was the recent subject of a show at the British Museum, and now Tate Modern gets in on the revival. Lesser-known pieces rub shoulders with masterpieces at this show, which features many works that have never been seen outside of France before. Price TBD. More info.
Maria Bartuszová
November 11, until April 18, 2021
The last show to open at Tate Modern in 2020 takes Slovakian artist Maria Bartuszová as its subject, exploring the abstract sculptures she composed out of white plaster. Price TBD. More info.
When to visit Tate Modern
As with most of London’s tourist attractions, there’s no bad time to visit Tate Modern. If you’re looking for large-scale art projects, a visit between October and March (the months in which Turbine Hall hosts installations) would be best. Otherwise, keep an eye on the upcoming exhibits to see what catches your fancy – sometimes, they’ll come with events of their own, including workshops, curator’s tours, and even themed lunches.
For a nice and different Tate Modern visit, head to the Tate Lates on the last Friday of every month. An enticing mix of art, music, workshops, films, and food, Tate Lates welcome emerging musicians, artists, and thinkers to deliver a thought-provoking evening out. They’re usually themed, so you can expect a new experience each time, and best of all, they’re still free to attend.
Restaurants, pubs, and bars near Tate Modern
You won’t have far to go to find a bite to eat: Tate Modern has an in-house restaurant, perched on Level 9 of the Blavatnik Building. Modern European cooking is complemented by British produce, and there’s a rather inviting wine list to peruse, too. As you’d expect, the views from this far up are pretty decent, which is always a lovely amuse-bouche.
Back on terra firma, a whole host of restaurants surround Tate Modern. A short walk away, you’ll find the mighty meaty offerings of Hawksmoor, the delicious Italian fare of O’Ver, ravishing ramen from Tonkotsu, and indulgent British cooking from Mark Hix at Hixter. An embarrassment of London Bridge restaurants lie a ten-minute walk away, along with a variety of chain restaurants scattered along the South Bank and Bankside.
We’ve also put together a nifty little list of restaurants near the Tate Modern, which you can sink your teeth into here. For a post-Tate drink, you can mosey along to wickedly inventive cocktail bar Lyaness, famed for unusual flavour pairings. Alternatively, the best pubs and bars in London Bridge are close by; even closer is the Tate Modern Terrace Bar, best known for their craft beer Tap Takeovers on the last Thursday of each month.
Tate Modern visitor information
Fancy paying Tate Modern a visit? Here are all the visitor details you’ll need to know. 👇
Location: Bankside, SE1 9TG. See it on Google Maps.
Nearest stations: Southwark, London Bridge, and Blackfriars. You can also catch riverboat services to Bankside Pier, which is just outside Tate Modern.
Price: happily, Tate Modern is free to visit. Special exhibitions will command an entry fee, and prices vary – if you’re a member or a Tate Patron, you get free entry to these. Disabled visitors will pay a concessionary rate, whilst anyone between the ages of 16-25 can join the Tate Collective to get £5 tickets to exhibitions.
Opening times: 10am-6pm (Sun to Thu), 10am-10pm (Fri to Sat).
More information: available on their website.
More London attractions to visit
Because we know you love exploring London, we’ve created some handy guides to the city’s best landmarks and tourist attractions.
🏛 British Museum: the massive museum that’s home to 7 million objects
🌲 Kew Gardens: London’s legendary botanical garden is a plant paradise
👀 View from the Shard: the highest viewpoint in London with a sky-high cocktail bar
Featured image: @abdullahgarcia
Also published on Medium.