Royal Academy of Arts

Choose the exhibition first

The Royal Academy is best approached through what is on. Its changing exhibitions give each visit a different focus, while its identity comes from the practising artists and architects who lead it.

Founded in 1768, it combines exhibiting with the work of an art school and an elected artistic community.

That makes it a useful contrast with a museum organised around one permanent national collection. A show here can follow an artist, a place or a larger idea, so give the exhibition’s subject as much weight as the institution’s name when deciding to go.

What is on now

Painting the French Riviera runs from 2 October 2026 to 31 January 2027. Paintings, sculpture, posters and film trace how the Mediterranean coast fed artistic experiment and later became an image of modern leisure.

The programme includes artists such as Monet, Matisse, Picasso and Yves Klein.

The standard exhibition ticket is £24–£26 without a donation. The ticket covers this show, rather than every paid event or exhibition at the Academy.

Selected collection displays have a different admission arrangement.

Arrive from Piccadilly

The Burlington House courtyard gives the visit a distinct beginning away from the busy pavement. Use this entrance while the Burlington Gardens building and Collection Gallery are being redeveloped.

Do not plan on walking through the whole campus during that work.

Allow time for one exhibition at an unhurried pace, then use the surrounding streets for the rest of the afternoon. Trying to add several distant museums can make an otherwise focused visit feel rushed.