V&A South Kensington
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Discover five millennia of art and design at London’s V&A Museum, where 2.3 million objects are housed in a building of outstanding craftsmanship.
The V&A Museum in London is a treasure trove of human creativity. Sculpture, fashion, photography, furniture, mechanical models and more grace its galleries, drawn from a permanent collection that spans a 5,000-year period.
Over 2,000 portrait miniatures and entire historic rooms are amongst a number of national collections, unsurpassed elsewhere in the UK, that the V&A is home to. Other highlights originate from around the world, including priceless rarities such as a set of seven cartoons by Renaissance master Raphael. World-first retrospectives such as Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty have drawn from this exceptional collection.
The V&A’s current home, a shining example of Victorian craftsmanship, was preceded by a temporary, 81 metre-long iron structure lampooned for its ugliness. Its replacement took over 50 years to finish. Astonishingly, the original museum also included a Gallery of False Principles – a showcase of ‘bad’ design that was closed within two weeks due to complaints from the exhibits’ manufacturers.
Today, visitors can enjoy three separate shops and a historic café alongside the V&A’s galleries. The museum’s peaceful John Madejski Garden hosts temporary outdoor installations, while on Level 2 researchers can draw on around one million books in the National Art Library.
Why you should go
Interior decoration by leading Victorian artists
A collection spanning five centuries of fashion
Once-in-a-lifetime exhibitions
Visitor information
Address
Cromwell Road, London, Greater London, SW7 2RL
020 7942 2000
Opening times
Daily 10am-5.45pm
Fri until 10pm
