Peggy Guggenheim in London: The Making of a Collector

Peggy Guggenheim in London: The Making of a Collector at the Royal Academy of Arts looks at a short but decisive chapter in the life of one of the twentieth century's most important art collectors. Between 1938 and 1939, Peggy Guggenheim ran a gallery called Guggenheim Jeune on Cork Street in Mayfair, showing the modern artists of her time. The exhibition runs from 21 November 2026 to 14 March 2027, organised with the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice.

It was in London that she learned to look at, show and buy modern art, laying the foundations of the collection now housed in her Venetian palazzo.

About Peggy Guggenheim

Born in New York in 1898 into the wealthy Guggenheim family, she became one of the great patrons of modern art. Advised by figures such as Marcel Duchamp, she supported Surrealist and abstract artists in Europe, later opened her gallery Art of This Century in New York, helped launch Jackson Pollock and others, and finally settled in Venice, where her collection is now a museum on the Grand Canal.

About the Exhibition

The exhibition focuses on her London period, when her gallery presented exhibitions of avant-garde art that were new to British audiences. It shows how a young collector built her eye and network, and how London's art scene of the late 1930s connected with Paris and the rest of Europe on the eve of war. It is curated by Gražina Subelytė of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection with guest curator Simon Grant.

Exhibition Dates

21 November 2026 — Exhibition opens 14 March 2027 — Exhibition closes

Why Visit?

For artists, gallerists and curators, it is a story about how a gallery can change careers and an art scene. Guggenheim took risks on artists who were not yet established, and her short-lived London gallery influenced what British audiences saw of modern art. The exhibition is also a chance to see modern works from the Venice collection in London.

Who Should Visit?

• Painters and sculptors interested in modernism and Surrealism
• Curators, gallerists and arts managers
• Art history students
• Anyone who has visited the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice

Tickets

This is a ticketed exhibition. Check the Royal Academy website for prices, concessions and timed booking.

Planning Your Visit

The Royal Academy is at Burlington House on Piccadilly, near Green Park and Piccadilly Circus stations. Cork Street, where Guggenheim Jeune once stood, is just behind the Academy and still home to commercial galleries, so you can walk from the exhibition to the street where the story happened.

London in the Late 1930s

In the years before the Second World War, London was a lively but small scene for modern art. Exhibitions of Surrealism and abstraction caused controversy, and a handful of galleries championed new artists. A new gallery run by a determined collector could make a real difference. The exhibition shows the network of artists, critics and friends around the gallery, and how the threat of war shaped what happened next.

From London to Venice

After closing her London gallery, she turned to building a collection, buying many works in Paris as war approached, then moved to New York and later to Venice. The collection she assembled is now one of the most important museums of modern art in Italy, in the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni on the Grand Canal. The exhibition explains how those first London years prepared everything that followed.

Tips for Visiting

Combine the exhibition with a walk along Cork Street and nearby galleries in Mayfair, where commercial galleries still show modern and contemporary art.

Things to Know

• Dates: 21 November 2026 – 14 March 2027.
• Subject: Guggenheim Jeune gallery, 1938–39.
• Co-organised with the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice.

Visit the Exhibition

Planning a visit?

Visit the Royal Academy

Tickets and opening hours are on the official Royal Academy website.

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Last verified: October 29, 2026