Serpentine Gallery
Much of the Serpentine’s appeal is in its snack size compared with some of the heavyweight galleries in London. Indeed its setting – in a Grade II-listed tea pavilion (built in 1934 in the heart of Hyde Park for the park’s ‘poorer visitors’ because the authorities thought there might be trouble if left without refreshments) – is also a pleasing antidote to the pandemonium of planet London. However, since becoming a contemporary art gallery in 1970 (and now co-directed by Hans Ulrich Obrist, named in 2009 as the most influential figure in the art world, and Julia Peyton-Jones OBE), its provocative exhibitions – from the likes of Jeff Koons, Richard Hamilton and Cindy Sherman – have stood in pleasing counterpoint to the tranquillity of the park. Each year from July to September the gallery reclaims some parkland with its Pavilion – always an exciting, and temporary showcase for pioneering and internationally acclaimed architects (previously, Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid and Rem Koolhaas) under which a cafe operates, and in July, the social calendar’s highlight, the Serpentine Summer Party. Park Nights runs throughout August showing open-air films, talks and ‘sound’ events in the Pavilion. Awfully refreshing indeed.
- Address
- West Carriage Drive, Kensington Gardens,
Kensington,
W2 3XA - Telephone
- +44 20 7402 6075
- Website
- serpentinegallery.org
- Opening Times
- daily, 10am-6pm. Free
- Price
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Serpentine Gallery
