This spring and summer, the exhibition calendars are full across Europe. As warmer temperatures beckon people to step out of their homes, exciting special exhibits call them inside the top museums across the continent. With so many shows to choose from, we’ve put together a list of the ones we think deserve extra attention. From artist’s first major exhibitions in a certain country to important retrospectives, these are the shows we think you won’t want to miss.
England
Starting in London, the National Portrait Gallery is hosting an exhibition of Edvard Munch Portraits from March 13 to June 15. This is the first exhibition in the UK focused on portraitures by the Norwegian artist behind “The Scream.” Advance booking is recommended as tickets are subject to availability.
Head over to the National Gallery to see José María Velasco: A View of Mexico from March 29 to August 17. This is the first UK exhibition of the 19th-century Mexican artist, and the first-ever exhibition dedicated to a historical Latin American artist at the museum.
Another show of interest on the docket this season at the National Gallery is Millet: Life on the Land. Running from August 7 to October 19, the exhibition features paintings and drawings from Jean-Francois Millet, a French artist who inspired artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, Edgar Degas, and Camille Pissarro.
Looking at the Tate Modern, Ed Atkins is the first major UK exhibition of the influential British artist known for his computer-generated videos and animations. Open to visitors from April 2 to August 25, it features moving image works, writing, paintings, embroideries, and drawings from the last 15 years.
Later this summer, the Tate Modern opens Emily Kam Kngwarry. This major exhibition from the renowned Australian artist runs from July 10, 2025 to January 11, 2026. It’s the first large-scale presentation of Kngwarry’s work ever held in Europe, and the art reflects her life as a senior Anmatyerre woman from Australia’s Utopia region.
You can see Hiroshige: artist of the open road at the British Museum from May 1 to September 7. Featuring prints, drawings, illustrated books, and paintings, this marks the first exhibition of the popular Japanese artist in London in more than 25 years. The works explore the natural beauty of Edo Japan and the pleasures of urban life.
Also at the British Museum, Admonitions of the instructress to the court ladies is on display from July 15 to August 25. This Chinese painting, a masterpiece which likely dates to between AD 400 and 700, can only be shown for six weeks a year due to conservation concerns.
Elsewhere in London at the V&A South Kensington, Design and Disability opens on June 7. This exhibit showcases the contributions of Disabled, Deaf, and neurodivergent people and communities to design history and contemporary culture from the 1940s to now.
Sussex is getting a new museum opening in May: the Goodwood Art Foundation. This contemporary art museum features work from internationally acclaimed artists set amid a stunning environment crafted by leading landscape designer, Dan Pearson. The headline exhibition is Rachel Whiteread—the first major showcase of the Turner Prize–winning artist’s sculptures and photographic work.
France
Cross the channel over to France for more exciting exhibits this season. At Musée d’Orsay in Paris, Art is in the Street runs from March 18 to July 6. With nearly 300 works, this exhibit examines the rise of the illustrated poster in Paris during the late 19th century. It’s the first exhibit of its kind in Paris, exploring the golden age of artistic posters.
Also at Musée d’Orsay, Lucas Arruda: Qu’importe le paysage is on from April 8 to July 20. Visitors here can enjoy the first monographic exhibition devoted to the Brazilian artist at a French museum. The imaginary landscapes showcase Arruda’s work around light.
Get yourself over to Paris’ Centre Pompidou before it closes for renovation for five years to see Paris Noir: Artistic circulations and anti-colonial resistance, 1950 – 2000. Opening March 19 and running until June 30, this exhibit looks at the presence and influence of Black artists in France from the 1950s to 2000. The show features work from 150 artists.
At the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris, Matisse and Marguerite: Through Her Father’s Eyes is one you won’t want to miss. On display from April 4 to August 24, the groundbreaking exhibition unites over 110 works by Henri Matisse of his eldest daughter, Marguerite Duthuit-Mattise—the artist’s most constant model. Visitors can see drawings from global collections that have rarely, if ever, been shown to the public and are on view in France for the first time.
The Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris has another noteworthy exhibition opening and closing on the same dates: Gabriele Münter: Painting to the point. With 150 works in a variety of mediums, this show stands as the first retrospective in France devoted to the German artist who was an important figure in German Expressionism.
Germany
Looking at Germany’s exhibitions for spring and summer, there’s Vaginal Davis: Fabelhaftes Produkt at Gropius Bau in Berlin. The show runs from March 21 to September 14 and is the first comprehensive solo exhibition of the artist, writer, and performer’s work in Germany. Visitors can see multimedia works from Davis across seven large-scale installations.
Later, Gropius Bau is putting on Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind. From April 11 to August 31, this comprehensive solo exhibition showcases over 200 wide-ranging works by the trailblazing artist from seven decades.
Italy
If you’re planning a trip to Italy, you can stop by Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi in Florence to see Tracey Emin: Sex and Solitude. On display from March 16 to July 20, the exhibition is the first major institutional show in the country dedicated to the English contemporary artist. The more than 60 multimedia works touch on the topics of sex and solitude in Emin’s signature candid, confessional approach.
From April 17 to August 31 at the same museum, Time for Women! celebrates the 20th anniversary of the biennial Max Mara Art Prize for Women. The exhibition presents works from the nine previous prize winners—the first presentation of their projects together.
At Palazzo Reale in Milan, Mario Giacomelli 1925-2025: The Image and the Word is on from May to September. Featuring over 300 original works including vintage prints and archival materials, this major retrospective exhibition celebrates the artistic journey of the renowned Italian photographer.
Netherlands
In Amsterdam, the H’ART Museum is hosting a blockbuster exhibition: From Rembrandt to Vermeer, Masterpieces from The Leiden Collection featuring 75 paintings by 27 artists. Celebrating the city’s 750th anniversary, the show runs from April 9 to August 24, 2025. It marks the first time that all 17 of The Leiden Collection’s Rembrandts will be shown together publicly in the Netherlands, and it features the only remaining Johannes Vermeer painting in private hands.
In Rotterdam, the Fenix—a new art museum about migration—is set to open on May 16. Exhibitions include All Directions: Art That Moves You (a global exploration of migration’s moving history), The Family of Migrants: Departures, journeys and arrivals in around two hundred photographs (photographs documenting people on the move), The Suitcase Labyrinth Discover the stories of Daisy, Ernst, and others (an audio tour through more than 2,000 suitcases), and more.
Spain
Turning our attention to Spain: In Madrid’s Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum, visitors can see Proust and the Arts from March 4 to June 8. With a selection of books by Proust alongside paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer, and others, the exhibition documents the importance of art in 20th-century writer Marcel Proust’s work.
At the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, there is an exhibit on Marisa González from May 21 to September 22. With works in a variety of media, the show chronicles the Spanish multimedia artist’s career after she was awarded the Velázquez Prize in 2023.
Over at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Helen Frankenthaler: Painting Without Rules is a major exhibition on the important 20th-century artist. Open from April 11 to September 28, the show is composed of works produced between 1953 and 2002 in conversation with paintings and sculptures by contemporary peers like Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko.
Later at the same museum, visitors can see the Barbara Kruger exhibition from June 24 to November 9. Featuring impactful installations with immersive, text-driven experiences, it’s the first survey exhibition in Spain centered on the renowned American artist.
Special Mentions
Big things are happening in the Polish art scene with the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw’s inaugural exhibition in its new home with nearly 49,000 square feet of exhibition space. Featuring over 150 works from the 1950s to the present, The Impermanent: Four Takes on the Collection showcases the ways artists from around the world have grappled with modernism and its ripple effects. The exhibit opened in late February and runs until October 5, 2025.
In Sweden, the National Museum in Stockholm is putting on Ernst Billgren – New Memories from April 10 to September 28. On display are two dozen works by the renowned Swedish artist, including several new paintings based on existing artworks in the museum’s collections.
Over in Ireland, visitors can check out Mainie Jellett and Evie Hone. The Art of Friendship at the National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin. Running from April 10 to August 10, this is the museum’s second major exhibition of the year. It unites artworks by pioneering Irish modernists Mainie Jellett and Evie Hone, exploring their friendship, shared experiences, and careers.
At the National Gallery Prague in the Czech Republic, see Women Artists: 1300–1900 from May 30 to November 2. The exhibition presents art by women from the Middle Ages to the end of the 19th century that highlights the unique qualities of women’s work.
Cover photo: Squeeze Chair (chaise longue), by Wendy Jacob, inspired by Temple Grandin, 1998. © Photo by Ted Diamond
[Written February 2025]
