10 Exhibitions To Look Forward To This Autumn

Tabish Khan
By Tabish Khan Last edited 109 months ago

Last Updated 23 September 2015

10 Exhibitions To Look Forward To This Autumn
The great political activist and artist Ai Weiwei will be showing in London. Image courtesy and copyright Ai Weiwei studio

This year so far has had some stellar exhibitions, including the insanely popular Alexander McQueen blockbuster, the sublime Defining Beauty at The British Museum and Carsten Holler ensured we had a ton of fun in a gallery setting. So it's easy to think we've had our fill for 2015, but there are still many more exhibitions to come. Here are the 10 openings we're most looking forward to over the next few months:

Ai Weiwei at Royal Academy of Arts
Arguably the world's most influential artist has finally got his passport back. He has permission to visit the UK to help pull together an exhibition that is likely to be filled with engaging art, strewn with political messages. 19 September-13 December

Drawing in Silver and Gold at The British Museum
The title may seem a little dry and so might the concept of looking at artworks all made using metalpoint. But it's the superstar names that has us hooked on the idea — it will feature works by art giants like Leonard da Vinci, Raphael, Albrech Durer and Rembrandt; as well as modern masters like Jasper Johns. 10 September-6 December

Cosmonauts; Birth of the Space Age at Science Museum
Understandably, many people view putting a man on the moon as one of humanity's greatest achievements. But the space race was two nations pushing each other to greater achievements and the Soviet space programme doesn't get as much attention as its US counterpart. This exhibition will look at the space programme that placed the first satellite, animal and human into space. 18 September-13 March 2016

The hands drawing each other is one of Escher's most well known works. © The M.C. Escher Company

The Amazing World of M.C. Escher at Dulwich Picture Gallery
This Dutch draughtsman is one of the world's best known artists, for his often bewildering, surreal drawings where gravity and space are distorted to create impossible scenarios. Surprisingly this will be his first major UK show — it's just opened up in Scotland and will travel down to London in a couple of months. 14 October-17 January 2016

Celts: Art and Identity at The British Museum
Celtic influences still exist in Irish and British culture today, but who were these people, how did they live and where can their influences be spotted now? This major exhibition will shed light on all of these questions. 24 September-31 January 2016

Goya: The Portraits at The National Gallery
We've already a taste of Goya this year, with the excellent Witches and Old Women exhibition. But there's more to this striking painter and our second helping comes in the shape of his portraits, promising to show us a side to this artist that we're not familiar with. 7 October-10 January 2016

Auerbach at Tate Britain
One of Britain's greatest living painters is still going strong today, and we are massive fans of his thick impasto paintings. The textures make his portraits and landscapes come to life so we're thrilled he's getting a retrospective this year. 9 October-13 March 2016

One of Calder's signature mobiles. Photo: Calder Foundation, New York / Art Resource, NY © ARS, NY and DACS, London 2015

Abraham Cruzvilllegas at Tate Modern Turbine Hall
The Turbine Hall is an excellent exhibition space but observant visitors of late will have noticed it has lain fallow since Richard Tuttle's large, yet underwhelming, piece was taken down in April. It will be back in action in October and we're looking forward to seeing how Cruzvillegas and his penchant for found objects will fill it. 13 October-3 April 2016

Giacometti: Pure Presence at National Portrait Gallery
Alberto Giacometti recently set the record for the world's most expensive sculpture when it sold for over $140m at auction. But he was also a talented painter and draughtsman and this exhibition will chart portraiture across his entire career. 15 October-10 January 2016

Alexander Calder: Performing Sculpture at Tate Modern
Calder is a distinctive artist, with his delicately balanced mobiles that can be set in motion with the slightest gust of air. His works are even more impressive at scale so we're hoping to see some of his larger ones in this retrospective of kinetic sculpture. 11 November-3 April 2016

This is our pick of the best exhibitions to see this Autumn, but which one are you most looking forward to? Let us know in the comments.