V&A East Museum to open in April 2026

The Victoria and Albert Museum has announced that the highly anticipated V&A East Museum will open its doors on 18 April 2026, marking a major new chapter for the cultural landscape of east London. Located in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park’s East Bank, the five-storey museum, designed by O’Donnell + Tuomey, has been co-created with local residents, young people, and creatives. The museum aims to highlight how making and creativity can drive social change, bringing together art, design, fashion, music, and performance in one dynamic space. Alongside exhibitions and commissions, visitors will also enjoy a café collaboration with the celebrated restaurant group Jikoni, known for its “cooking without borders” ethos.

V&A East Museum © Niall Hodson

Central to the museum are two free permanent galleries titled Why We Make, exploring global creativity through more than 500 objects from the V&A’s vast collections. These displays, shaped by east London’s energy and designed with the V&A East Youth Collective, address key contemporary issues such as identity, representation, wellbeing, social justice, and environmental action. Highlights include works by Leigh Bowery, Claude Cahun, Althea McNish, Jo Spence, Maud Sulter, and new acquisitions from Yinka Ilori, Bisila Noha, and fashion designers VIN + OMI. Each display interweaves historic and modern artefacts, from Italian Renaissance paintings and Tibetan jewellery to radical fashion and community zines produced by local creative collectives such as One of My Kind and Rabbits Road Press.

V&A East Museum Why We Make Galleries Crafting Stories Section Render. © JA Projects.

To coincide with its opening, V&A East Museum will debut a six-monthly creative commissions programme across both its sites, V&A East Museum and the V&A East Storehouse. The inaugural line-up features eight international artists, including Tania Bruguera, Es Devlin, Rene Matić, Carrie Mae Weems, and Lawrence Lek, each creating new works that respond to east London’s creative history and future. Visitors will also be greeted by Thomas J Price’s monumental sculpture, A Place Beyond, symbolising the museum’s commitment to inclusivity and shared experience. The museum’s director, Dr Gus Casely-Hayford, described the project as a “welcoming space for all,” designed to foster community, conversation, and creativity amid global challenges such as climate change and social polarisation.

Nolay, London, 2005, © Sam White

The museum’s first landmark exhibition, The Music is Black: A British Story, will open alongside the museum in April 2026. This groundbreaking show, developed in partnership with BBC Music, traces the impact of Black British music from 1900 to the present day, featuring objects such as Joan Armatrading’s childhood guitar, fashion worn by Little Simz, and photographs by Jennie Baptiste, Dennis Morris, Eddie Otchere, and Sam White. Accompanied by a great programme of events, including The Music is Black Festival, the exhibition highlights the museum’s mission to celebrate creativity as a unifying force. Together with its sister site, the V&A East Storehouse, which opened in May 2025, the new museum cements east London’s role as a hub of global cultural exchange and innovation.

Date: opening from 18 April 2026. Location: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, East Storehouse, V&A, Parkes St, London E20 3AX. vam.ac.uk