Future Exhibitions & Displays - Victoria and Albert Museum

Quilts 1700 - 2010

‘At the End of the Day’, a displacement flag, Natasha Kerr, 2007. Museum no. T.43-2008

20 March - 4 July 2010

Supported by the Friends of the V&A

Exhibitions, Room 39 and North Court
£10 Adults
£ 8 Seniors
£ 6 Students, 12-17 yrs, ES40 Holders
Members go free. For more information click here.

This exhibition will showcase the V&A's collection of patchwork and quilted covers to bring together over 300 years of British quilting history, from the spectacular bed hangings and silk coverlets of the 18th century, to the creative reinvention of the quilt by contemporary artists.

Book tickets

Grace Kelly: Style Icon

Photograph by Erwin Blumenfeld, New York, 1955. Copyright The Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld 2009.

17 April - 26 September 2010

Sponsored by Van Cleef & Arpels

Fashion, Room 40
Admission charge will apply

The spectacular wardrobe of Grace Kelly will be on display at the V&A. Tracing the evolution of her style from her days as one of Hollywoods most popular actresses in the 1950s and as Princess Grace of Monaco, the display will present over 50 of Grace Kelly's outfits together with hats, jewellery and the original Hermès Kelly bag. Dresses from her films, including High Society, will be shown as well as the gown she wore to accept her Oscar award in 1955. These will be accompanied by film clips and posters, photographs and her Oscar statuette. The display will also include the lace ensemble worn by Grace Kelly for her civil marriage ceremony to Prince Rainier in 1956 and 35 haute couture gowns from the 1960s and 70s by her favourite couturiers Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy, and Yves St Laurent.

Horace Walpole and Strawberry Hill

The Walpole Cabinet, designed by Horace Walpole and William Kent, cabinet attributed to William Hallett, figures by J.F. Verskovis and medallions by Andrea Pozzo, 1743. Museum no. W.52-1925

6 March - 4 July 2010

£6 Adults
£5 Concessions (seniors, students, 12–17-year olds, ES40 holders)
Free to V&A Members
For information on how to become a member visit our Membership pages .

This will be the first major exhibition on Horace Walpole, the most important English collector of the 18th century, and will bring together many of his most remarkable objects. Walpole was the first to systematically assemble the visual evidence of English history, and the first to recognise the importance of the portrait miniature to the history of British art.

David Watkins - Artist in Jewellery, a Retrospective View (1972 - 2010)

'Torus 300: Blue Burst', neckpiece, David Watkins, 2006.

23 February - 26 September 2010

Celebrate the career of David Watkins, leading British artist jeweller and sculptor in metal. This retrospective will feature 68 pieces of jewellery that show how his early jewellery as miniature sculptures developed to become large scale wearable objects that also exist independently as art objects. The use of different techniques, materials and styles displayed across these pieces will show his versatility as an artist jeweller and herald Watkins as a contemporary force in international design.

Modern Masters: Matisse, Picasso, Dali and Warhol

Robert Doisneau, 'Les mains de Picasso', France, c.1952. Museum no. PH.265-1980.

1 May - 23 June 2010

This display will feature prints by four of the 20th century's greatest artists: Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and Andy Warhol. Over 50 works drawn from the V&A Museum's collections have been selected to illustrate these modern masters' engagement with the printed medium. Both celebrated and less familiar prints in a range of techniques are included, spanning a period of 75 years and representing one of the most creative and diverse artistic periods in the history of western art.

My Generation: The Glory Years of British Rock

Jimi Hendrix Photo Harry Goodwin

30 April – 24 October 2010

Theatre and Performance, Room 104
Free admission

Top of the Pops was launched by the BBC on New Year's Day in 1964, and went on to become the longest-running TV show in British history. On that night the Rolling Stones were the opening band; the photographer was Harry Goodwin. This display will bring together 200 of Harry Goodwin's most striking and memorable photographs, from a shocked Bob Dylan (temporarily blinded by Harry's flash in punishment for grumpiness) to a dramatic shot of Jimi Hendrix playing the guitar with his teeth. These images capture the mood and style of the 60s and 70s, and the impact of its musical stars. They celebrate those who are still actively part of the contemporary music scene and those who are remembered with veneration and affection. As the show's resident photographer from 1964 to 1973, Harry Goodwin's unique collection of photographs remembers them all.

1:1 Architects Build Small Spaces

Chashitsu Tetsu, Terunobu Fujimori, 2005

15 June - 30 August 2010

The Porter Gallery and throughout the Museum
Free admission

The V&A is commissioning a group of international architects to build a series of structures throughout the Museum which will respond to the theme of the 'retreat'. The starting point for these experimental projects will be the idea of a small enclosed space representing an escape from the chaos of urban life to an area for peace, contemplation, shelter or creativity. One of the central aims of the exhibition is to move away from explaining architecture through drawings and models and instead allow the visitor to experience the architecture itself.

Read curator Abraham Thomas' blog about the evolution of the exhibition here .

Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballets Russes, 1909 - 1929

'Le Train Bleu', stage frontcloth signed by Picasso for the Diaghilev Ballets Russes, 1924. Museum no. S.316-1978

25 September 2010 - 9 January 2011

Admission charge will apply

This exhibition will showcase the glamour and magic of Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, exploring its origin and legacy 100 years after its first performance. A larger than life personality, Diaghilev's artists included such luminaries as George Balanchine, Coco Chanel, Robert Delaunay, Natalia Goncharova, Vaslav Nijinsky and Pablo Picasso.

Design For Life

Handbag design incorporating architectural lines from the V&A, Holly Cowan. Photo Irini Papadimitriou.

26 April – 6 June 2010

Rooms 17a & 18a
Free admission

See handbags, lighting, cutlery and many other products created by young people and inspired by museum collections, in this display. Working with professional designers, these young people took part in the Design For Life project, developing their talents and acquiring new skills. Design For Life is a partnership project led by the V&A with Bolton Museum and Archive Service, Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, Manchester City Art Gallery, Museums Sheffield and the Shipley Art Gallery, Tyne & Wear. It is part of the DCMS/DCSF strategic commissioning programme.

Shadow Catchers

Invocation, Adam Fuss, 1992. Museum no. E.693-1993

13 October 2010 - 20 February 2011

The Porter Gallery
Admission charge will apply

Shadow Catchers will present the work of five international artists who, for the last twenty years or more, have been challenging the assumption that a camera is necessary to make a photograph. By casting shadows on light sensitive paper or chemically manipulating its surface these artists seemingly capture the presence of objects, figures or glowing light. The results are exciting images often with surreal or abstract effects and symbolic content. These camera-less techniques were explored at the dawn of photography and have now been rediscovered by contemporary image makers. On display will be unique and beautifully crafted works by Pierre Cordier, Susan Derges, Adam Fuss, Garry Fabian Miller and Floris Neusüss.

Designers of the Future

Design student in the Cast Courts Photo by Rebecca Reynolds

15 June – 31 July 2010

Room 220, Sackler Centre
Free admission

This display will showcase work by art and design students from the University of Brighton and the Royal College of Art inspired by the V&A and its collections. A related conference exploring museum and higher education collaboration will take place in July 2010.

In partnership with the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning through Design (CETLD)

Objects of Luxury: French porcelain of the eighteenth century

Sugar basin and cover, Saint-Cloud, about 1700-20, Museum no. 487-1909

18 September 2009 - end May 2010

Room 146
Free admission

Celebrate one of the most exciting discoveries of the 18th century in this display.

Known as 'white gold', porcelain was produced for use in all aspects of fashionable public and private life; from banquets to boudoirs, from tea drinking to the toilette. The sensuous charm of the 'soft-paste' porcelain produced in France earned it universal admiration. This display will introduce the major French factories, including the Royal Porcelain Manufacture at Sèvres, and will demonstrate the wide variety of objects they could provide for their fashionable clientele.

Richard Slee: From Utility to Futility

Richard Slee, Philosophy, 2008. Photo by Zul Mukhida.

5 June 2010 - 3 April 2011

Room 146
Free admission

Richard Slee is a renowned British artist who has built up an international reputation. For this display, he will present new works specifically for the two large wall cases and three free-standing cases in the Ceramics galleries. While Slee's primary medium remains ceramics, he has ventured into other materials, processes, and subject matter. With characteristic irony, these latest works will explore such themes as the demise of male DIY, and the shift in the crafts from items of everyday utility to autonomous art objects.

The Cult of Beauty: The Aesthetic Movement in Britain, 1860-1900

Portrait of Mrs. Luke lonides, William Blake Richmond, England, early 20th century. Museum no. E.1062-2003.

April - July 2011

Admission charge will apply

This will be the first international exhibition to explore the unconventional creativity of the Aesthetic Movement in Britain (1860-1900).

The well spring of the 'new art' movements of the late 19th century, Aestheticism is now acknowledged for its revolutionary re-negotiation of the relationships between the artist and society, between the 'fine' and design arts, as well as between art and ethics and art and criticism.

Postmodernism: Style and Subversion 1970-1990

'Casablanca', sideboard, Ettore Sottsass, made by Memphis, 1981. Museum no. W.14-1990

24 September 2011 - 8 January 2012

Rooms 38 and 39, and North Court
Admission charge will apply

What does Postmodernism mean, and where did it come from? The V&A will explore these questions in a new exhibition focusing on the 1970s and 1980s.

The ideas of Postmodernism first emerged in architecture as new interest was shown in buildings from the past and the minimalism of Modernism was eschewed. These early ideas began to influence other areas of design, including furniture and graphics. The exhibition will also look at the popular side of Postmodernism, especially the music of the time such as raves, New Wave and hip-hop, and graffiti art. Design became big business in the boom years of the 1980s when speed, excess and fame were keywords and more is more was the mantra of the time.