From the joyous art of Rose Wylie, “the rebel painter” of the Royal Academy to the gut punching “confessional” landmark show celebrating Tracy Emin at Tate Modern, and the “homecoming” of Cecily Brown at the Serpentine, these three exhibitions represent a historic moment for contemporary British painting.
1. Rose Wylie at the Royal Academy
Despite finding mainstream fame only in her late 70s, Wylie has become a cultural icon whose work feels more youthful and urgent than artists half her age. At 91 years old, Rose Wylie’s brings her largest collection of her work to the grand Main Galleries of the Royal Academy. Expect over 90 works that treat high-brow history and low-brow celebrity culture with equal curiosity. Her massive, exuberant canvases feature a “cast of characters” ranging from Elizabeth I and Snow White to Serena Williams and Nicole Kidman.
The Picture Comes First is at the Royal Academy until 19 April 2026
Why go: It is a masterclass in creative freedom. Wylie’s paintings—often created in her legendary paint-strewn studio in Kent—remind us that life is messy, funny, and never too late to start.
2. Tracy Emin: A Second Life, at Tate Modern
Tracey Emin has spent four decades channelling her life into her art with an honesty that once “shocked a nation.” Now, she returns to the South Bank with a poignant show at Tate Modern that focuses on her lifelong commitment to painting.
A Second Life isn’t a simple retrospective; it’s a deeply personal journey through passion, pain, and healing. The exhibition features seminal works—including the iconic My Bed—alongside brand-new paintings and previously unexhibited material. It also pays homage to her multicultural heritage, exploring her Turkish Cypriot and Romanichal roots.
This is Emin at her most reflective. Having survived major illness in recent years, this show feels like a “culmination” of her career—raw, resilient, and undeniably powerful. This hearty display of pure, raw feelings is showing that you can face life-altering trauma and come out the other side with more creative power than ever. It’s a story of survival that resonates with anyone navigating their own “second chances.”
Tracy Emin: A Second Life is at Tate Modern until 31 August 2026
3. Cecily Brown: Picture Making at Serpentine South
After thirty years living and working in New York, British painter Cecily Brown is having a major London homecoming. Known for her “painter’s painter” reputation, Brown’s work sits on the exhilarating edge between abstraction and figuration.
The Serpentine exhibition is a site-specific embrace of Kensington Gardens. Brown has created new works specifically for this show, inspired by the London’s park green space and her own childhood memories of the English countryside. Expect “nature walks” gone wrong, amorous couples hidden in wooded glades, and echoes of Victorian fairy tales and Ladybird storybooks.
Picture Making is at Serpentine South from 27 March until 6 September 2026
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