Running from 21 May to 27 September, the James McNeill Whistler exhibition takes place at Tate Britain.
The exhibition explores how he pioneered new and innovative techniques.
It's a rare chance to see world-famous paintings alongside and never seen works.
This May, the James McNeill Whistler exhibition opens at Tate Britain.
It’s time to experience the captivating world of the American artist James McNeill Whistler. Famous for breaking the rules, he rewrote what it meant to be an artist. Running from 21 May to 27 September 2026, the James McNeill Whistler exhibition takes place at Tate Britain and shines a light on his work.
James McNeill Whistler at Tate Britain explores how he pioneered innovative techniques and created beautiful, ethereal visions of modern life that would earn him a place among the most influential artists of the 19th and 20th centuries. The retrospective is the first major European exhibition of his work in 30 years, and brings together the artist’s world-famous paintings alongside rarely and never-before-seen works.
James McNeill Whistler at Tate Britain includes portraits, drawings, prints, and designs, from as early as his teens in St. Petersburg to his late self-portraits. The exhibition presents both a boldly experimental artist and cosmopolitan celebrity, disrupting the conventions of Victorian society in pursuit of truth, beauty and progress.
In James’ later years, he spent his time between Paris and London. The exhibition includes stories from his time in London. He faced a court case in London, which resulted in his bankruptcy and exile from the capital. Plus, there are full-length portraits, repeatedly rubbed back and reworked until they became almost ghostly, from the mysterious Portrait of Lady Archibald Campbell to the Rembrandt-inspired Gold and Brown: Self Portrait.
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Where: Tate Britain, Millbank, London, SW1P 4RG
When: 21 May to 27 September 2026
Price: Tickets from £24
Contact: www.tate.org.uk