Photography exhibitions to see in London in autumn 2026

London is having a particularly good year for photography. Across the city, exhibitions are bringing together intimate portraits, vivid street photography, documentary images and bold new approaches to the medium, with shows exploring everything from post-war Japan to contemporary Britain and America. Here are some of the photography exhibitions worth making time for in London this year.

For a look at what else is opening this spring, click here for our guide to the exhibitions opening in London in spring 2026.

The 90s: Art and Fashion

Juergen Teller, Young Pink Kate, London 1998 © Juergen Teller, All rights Reserved

#FLODown: In October, Tate Britain takes us back to the decade when British culture exploded with confidence, attitude and creative freedom. Curated by Edward Enninful OBE, The 90s: Art and Fashion brings together the artists, photographers, designers and cultural figures who defined one of Britain’s most influential eras. From Britpop and rave culture to Cool Britannia, supermodels and the rise of the Young British Artists, the 1990s saw art, fashion, music and popular culture collide like never before. Featuring photography by Juergen Teller, Corinne Day, David Sims, Nick Knight and Wolfgang Tillmans, alongside work by Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, Sarah Lucas, Chris Ofili, Gillian Wearing, Steve McQueen and Yinka Shonibare, the exhibition also showcases boundary-pushing fashion by Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, Hussein Chalayan and Stella McCartney. More than a nostalgia trip, The 90s explores how a rebellious generation challenged creative hierarchies, changed the way Britain saw itself and left an influence that is still everywhere today.

Date: 8 October 2026 – 14 February 2027. Location: Tate Britain, Millbank, London SW1P 4RG. Price: £22 / free for members. Book now.

Nan Goldin: You Never Did Anything Wrong

Nan Goldin. Image credit Max Michael Crame

#FLODown: In November 2026, the Hayward Gallery will open an exhibition dedicated to acclaimed American artist and activist Nan Goldin. You Never Did Anything Wrong will explore the beauty and fragility of the human condition through her powerful photography, documenting personal relationships, addiction and queer communities over five decades. The exhibition will present intimate images from Goldin’s own life and the lives of those around her, showing how personal experiences connect with wider social and political themes. It will mark her first institutional exhibition in the UK since 2002 and celebrate her influential contribution to contemporary photography.

Date: 24 November 2026 – 7 March 2027. Location: Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX. Price: from £19. Concessions available. Book now

Kyotographie: Kawada Kikuji x Iwane Ai

Kyotographie: Kawada Kikuji x Iwane Ai. Japan House London. Photographer: Florent Michel

#FLODown: At Japan House London, an exhibition dedicated to two of Japan’s most exciting photographers, Kawada Kikuji and Iwane Ai, is currently on display. The exhibition showcases their thought-provoking works through immersive projections and prints, allowing visitors to feel part of the images. It features Kawada’s celebrated photography exploring Japan’s postwar history and the natural world, alongside Iwane Ai’s award-winning series focusing on Japanese immigrant communities in Hawaii and the impact of the COVID-19 crisis in Japan. As the first photography exhibition at Japan House London, it highlights the power of photography to explore memory, identity and human experiences.

Date: 3 June – 18 October 2026. Location: Japan House London, 101–111 Kensington High Street, London, W8 5SA. Price: Free. japanhouselondon.uk

Japanese Women Photographers: From 1950s to Now

Japanese Women Photographers: From 1950s to Now is at The Photographers' Gallery from 24 June–27 September 2026. Organised by Aperture.

#FLODown: For its summer exhibition programme, The Photographers’ Gallery are showcasing a major exhibition celebrating the work of 27 Japanese women photographers who have shaped and redefined the history of photography in Japan. From the post-war period to the present day, the exhibition brings together more than 200 works, including photographs, video, installations, and rare photobooks, offering diverse perspectives on identity, gender, culture, and everyday life. It highlights both well-known and previously under-recognised artists, showing how women photographers have challenged conventions and expanded the language of the medium across generations.

Date: 24 June – 27 September 2026. Location: The Photographers’ Gallery, 16–18 Ramillies Street, London W1F 7LW. Price: £12 / £9 concessions (members go free) . Advance online booking: £10 / £7.50 concessions. Book now.

Portrait of a City: A Century of American Photography

Lewis Hine, Riding the Ball High up on Empire State, c.1930. Courtesy of The Savings Bank Foundation DNB Collection, on deposit at Lillehammer Art Museum

#FLODown: Dulwich Picture Gallery’s summer exhibition surveys a century of American photography through the lens of urban life. Spanning the early 20th century to the 2010s, the show brings together 34 photographers working across cities including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco. Figures such as Alfred Stieglitz, Dorothea Lange, Diane Arbus, and Garry Winogrand document shifting social conditions, from industrial growth and migration to protest and everyday street life. The exhibition traces how photographers adapted portraiture beyond the studio, using the city itself as both backdrop and subject.

Date: 28 July - 4 October 2026. Location: Dulwich Picture Gallery, College Road, London SE21 7AD. Price: Adults from £16. Book now

Tim Walker’s Fairyland: Love and Legends

Ian McKellen, Love, London, 2023 © Tim Walker. Tim Walker’s Fairyland. Love and Legends to open at National Portrait Gallery in 2026.

#FLODown: An exhibition celebrating queer identity, community and love through the imaginative lens of one of Britain’s most influential photographers, Tim Walker, will open at the National Portrait Gallery this autumn, in time for Frieze Week. Known for his whimsical, fairytale-inspired style, Walker presents a body of new work developed over five years, featuring activists, performers, artists and writers captured in his distinctive visual language. Bringing together exuberant portraits and fantastical landscapes, the exhibition invites visitors into Walker’s richly imagined world, shaped by his longstanding inspirations and collaborations. Curated by Susanna Brown and accompanied by a new publication featuring contributions from leading cultural voices, Fairyland offers a joyful and expansive celebration of creativity, individuality and the freedom to be oneself.

Date: 9 October 2026 - 7 February 2027. Location: National Portrait Gallery, St Martin's Place, London, WC2H 0HE. Price: TBC. npg.org.uk

Wakaliga Uganda

Wakaliga Uganda, production image, 2025. Commissioned and produced by Chisenhale Gallery, London. Courtesy of the artists.

#FLODown: Wakaliga Uganda, also known as Wakaliwood, will present its first UK solo exhibition at Chisenhale Gallery this October. Founded by Isaac and Harriet Nabwana, the Kampala-based film collective is known for its ultra-low-budget action films, which rework the visual language of Western action cinema through DIY production, explosive sequences and collaborative storytelling. Their playful and inventive films explore global power dynamics, cultural representation and African storytelling. The exhibition will premiere a newly commissioned film exploring the historical and political significance of Kibuuka Omumbaale, a warrior and god of the Baganda people of central Uganda.

Date: 2 October – 6 December 2026. Location: Chisenhale Gallery, 64 Chisenhale Road, London E3 5QZ. Book now.

Light & Magic: The Birth of Art Photography

Long Chin-San, Riverside Spring 1942. The Royal Photographic Society Collection at the V&A, acquired with the generous assistance of the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Art Fund © Courtesy the Estate of the Artist 

#FLODown: Tate Modern will explore the story of Pictorialism, the international photographic movement that helped establish photography as a recognised form of fine art. Featuring 200 rare vintage prints by more than 80 artists from across Europe, the Americas, Asia and Australia, Light & Magic explores how photographers experimented with light, printing and staging, while drawing inspiration from painting and other artistic traditions. From dreamlike portraits and landscapes to bold modernist compositions, the exhibition offers a fresh look at photography and the artists who helped shape its future.

Date: 14 October 2026 – 21 February 2027. Location: Tate Modern, Bankside, London SE1 9TG. Price: Free for Tate Members; £5 for Tate Collective members aged 16–25. tate.org.uk