What's on in London this week: 11 – 17 September 2023
Discover our pick of things to do in London this week: 11 – 17 September 2023.
Waterworks Festival
Waterworks Festival is back this week for its third installment at Gunnersbury Park. Featuring a diverse lineup representing London's underground music scene, highlights include artists like Eliza Rose, Flowdan, Palms Trax, Sherelle, and more. With seven stages featuring top-notch sound systems, including the Orbit stage with an all-female lineup and 360-degree sound, the festival offers a unique day-to-night experience as the sun sets.
Date: 16 September 2023.Location: Gunnersbury Park, Popes Ln, London W3 8LQ. Price: from £60. Book now.
Image: Waterworks 2022. Photo by Jake Davis @jakephilipdavis @khromacollective.
London Schools Symphony Orchestra - Symphonic Scenery
The London Schools Symphony Orchestra will perform a program of expressive music inspired by scenes and poems. This includes pieces by Lili Boulanger, Eric Whitacre, Dvořák, and Mussorgsky. The orchestra introduces young musicians to the joys and challenges of playing in a large symphony orchestra, emphasising the importance of music education in London.
Date: 13 September 2023. Time: 7.30pm. Location: Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8DS. Price: £9-26. Book now.
Jaeger-LeCoultre presents the Golden Ratio Musical Show
Jaeger-LeCoultre presents a free 4-day sound and light show at Battersea Power Station. The show celebrates the Golden Ratio with a unique soundtrack by British musician TØKIO M¥ERS. The 1931 Cinema offers free admission all day, showcasing The Golden Ratio Musical Show, a 10-minute display on a water screen that tells the story of the Golden Ratio in nature, science, architecture, art, and design. TØKIO M¥ERS is known for his experimental approach to classical music, blending various genres in his music.
Date: 14 - 17 September 2023. Location: Main Piazza Circus Rd W, Nine Elms, London SW11 8AL. Price: Free. Book now.
Image: Elisabeth Leonskaja © Ryan Buchanan.
Elisabeth Leonskaja at Wigmore Hall
Elisabeth Leonskaja, a legendary pianist, is showcasing her exceptional interpretative skills in her focus on Brahms's music. She is particularly delving into Brahms's three early piano sonatas, composed when he was just 20 years old in 1852-3. These sonatas are known for their substantial and demanding nature, requiring both impeccable technique and a deep understanding of the music's structure and expressive nuances.
Date: 17 September 2023. Time: 7.30pm. Location: Wigmore Hall, 36 Wigmore St, London W1U 2BP. Price: £18- £40. Book now.
London Design Festival
The London Design Festival kicks off this week, celebrating design excellence. The 2023 program features innovative installations, museum exhibits, Design Districts, Fairs, and the Global Design Forum addressing global challenges. Click here for the full program of events.
Date: 16 - 24 September 2023. Website: londondesignfestival.com.
Image: Peckham Festival. Photo by Yaneva Santana.
Peckham Festival
Peckham Festival returns this week for its seventh year, celebrating the vibrant creative community of Peckham through music, art, workshops, and collaborations. Families can look forward to engaging workshops, from skateboarding to literature, promising an enjoyable experience for all attendees.
Date: 15 – 17 September 2023. Location: Peckham Festival is running out of locations across SE15. Price: Free. Website: peckhamfestival.org.
Drink Spotlight
The return of the Pumpkin Spice Latte
Great news for Starbucks enthusiasts in the city: the Pumpkin Spice Latte is now available at Starbucks stores! This beloved autumn classic, known for its warm blend of Starbucks® Espresso Roast, pumpkin spice sauce, and steamed milk, topped with whipped cream and pumpkin pie spices, is ready to be enjoyed. Head to your nearest Starbucks store to savour the taste of autumn today! Click here for more.
Image: Engin Akyurt.
Arts & Culture
Opening this week
The Living House
Van Gogh House in Brixton is celebrating the 150th anniversary of Vincent van Gogh's residence at 87 Hackford Road and the 200th anniversary of the house itself with The Living House. This exhibition and event series features artists responding to the idea that the house is still alive and inhabited, exploring the connection between art and daily life. Guided tours and expert talks will provide insights into Van Gogh's time in London and the city's culture.
Date: 14 September – 17 December 2023. Location: Van Gogh House, 87 Hackford Road, Stockwell, London SW9 0RE. Price: from £7.50. Concessions available. Book now.
Image: Van Gogh House. Photography by Tom Parsons. © Van Gogh House.
Céline Condorelli: Pentimenti (The Corrections)
Céline Condorelli, a London-based French-Italian artist, has been named the National Gallery's 2023 Artist in Residence. This program, in partnership with the Contemporary Art Society and the Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery, Exeter (RAMM), allows her to explore the boundaries between public and private spaces through her art. Condorelli will work in the National Gallery's studio, responding to its collections and creating a publication and display from September 2023. One of her works will become a part of RAMM's permanent collection through this collaboration.
Date: 13 September 2023 – 7 January 2024. Location: The National Gallery, Room 31, Getty Entrance, Trafalgar Square, London, WC2N 5DN. Price: Free.
Julianknxx: Chorus in Rememory of Flight
Julianknxx's multi-screen installation showcases his year-long collaboration with Black choirs in European port cities, exploring choral singing as a resistance to cultural erasure. Covering 4,000 kilometres across cities like Hamburg, London, and Barcelona, it symbolises historical and ancestral journeys. The phrase "we are what’s left of us" unites choral voices, emphasising music's role in preserving cultural memory. This exhibition offers unique historical perspectives, concluding in a contemplative space that underscores the importance of unconventional storytelling. Julianknxx's interdisciplinary approach redefines African art and culture through his personal history in transitional spaces.
Date: 14 September 2023 – 11 February 2024. Location: Barbican Centre, Silk St, London, EC2Y 8DS. Price: Free. Book now.
Image: Julianknxx, On Freedom Of Movement (wi de muv) - Still, 2022 Courtesy of the artist © Studioknxx.
Benoît Piéron: Slumber Party
Benoît Piéron's upcoming exhibition delves into the intersection of art and survival, exploring sensuality, bodily boundaries, and waiting. His creations, from cabins to transformed gardens, draw from his experience with illness, weaving uncertainty, life, and immunity into his work. The exhibition is accompanied by his debut artist publication.
Date: 15 September 2023 - 12 November 2023. Location: Chisenhale Gallery, 64 Chisenhale Road, London E3 5QZ. Price: Free. Website: chisenhale.org.uk.
Gabrielle Chanel: Fashion Manifesto
The V&A Museum will host a landmark exhibition this week, focusing on pioneering fashion designer Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel. This first-of-its-kind UK exhibit will feature over 200 outfits, accessories, and more, spanning Chanel's 1910-1971 designs.
Date: 16 September 2023 – 25 February 2024. Location: V&A South Kensington, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 2RL. Price: from £24. Concessions available. Book now.
Image: Lithograph of CHANEL No.5 fragrance by Sem (Georges Gouarsat, dit) (1863-1934), published in The New York Times, 16 December 1924 © Paris Musées, Musée Carnavalet, Histoire de Paris.
Last chance
Martin Wong: Malicious Mischief
The Camden Art Centre is hosting an exhibition of the work of Martin Wong, a Chinese-American artist known for his depictions of social, sexual, and political scenes from the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. Wong's work offers a countercultural voice that challenged the art establishment's reactionary discourse at the time. Wong's practice is influenced by Chinese iconography, urban poetry, graffiti, carceral aesthetics, sign language, and the Latin American community he became involved with. The exhibition presents over 100 of his works, including early paintings and sculptures, his iconic paintings from the 1980s and 1990s, and his reminiscences on East and West Coast Chinatowns.
Date: until 17 September 2023. Location: Camden Art Centre, Arkwright Road, London, NW3 6DG. Price: Free.
Civilization: The Way We Live Now
Saatchi Gallery presents Civilization: The Way We Live Now, an international exhibition showcasing 350 original prints by 150 renowned artists. Offering a unique perspective on humanity's rapidly changing collective life worldwide, the exhibition explores various aspects of civilization through eight thematic chapters.The exhibition features previously unseen images that highlight the complexity and contradictions of contemporary civilization.
Date: until 17 September 2023. Location: Saatchi Gallery, Duke of York's HQ, King's Rd, Chelsea, London SW3 4RY. Price: from £16. Concessions available.Book now.
Image: Reiner Riedler, Wild River, Florida, from the series Fake Holidays, 2005 © Reiner Riedler.
Life is more important than art
Life is more important than art is a summer-long program at Whitechapel Gallery, exploring the intersection of art and everyday life. Inspired by James Baldwin's perspective, it reflects on the role of art amidst the cost-of-living crisis and post-pandemic challenges. The exhibition focuses on London's dynamic histories of migration and difference, showcasing how art can reflect lived experiences and open new possibilities.
Date: until 17 September 2023. Location: Whitechapel Gallery, 77-82 Whitechapel High St, London E1 7QX. Price: Free.Website: whitechapelgallery.org.
Image: Sarah Sze, Metronome, 2023. The Waiting Room, Peckham Rye Station. Commissioned by Artangel © Sarah Sze, Courtesy the Artist. Photo by Thierry Bal.
Sarah Sze: The Waiting Room
Sarah Sze has transformed a disused waiting room at Peckham Rye station with her site-specific sculptural work, Metronome. The exhibition, titled The Waiting Room, explores our relationship with images, time, and materiality. Sze's immersive installations integrate everyday materials, torn photographs, and videos. Metronome is a dynamic structure resembling a globe, illuminated by moving images from 42 projectors. It reflects the fragility of life and captures the speed of modern existence.
Date: until 17 September 2023. Location: The Waiting Room, Peckham Rye Station, SE15 4RX.Price: Free.
Pop-ups & Venues
SC:04 X CRISIS charity pop-up
Image: SC:04 x Crisis
A charity pop-up shop called SC:04 is partnering with Crisis UK to sell second-hand clothing featuring band-inspired screen prints. All proceeds from the sales will go towards helping the homeless in London. Additionally, the event will offer screen printing workshops where attendees can make a small donation to charity to upcycle their clothing and learn about the screen printing process. The pop-up shop will also feature a curated selection of vinyl records for browsing and playing, and on Sunday, there will be all-day DJ sets performed by EPAC.
Date: 16 - 17 September 2023. Time: 11am - 6.30pm. Location: Crisis Store Bricklane 78 Quaker Street, E1 6SW. Price: Free. Book now.
#FLOFavourites: Pick of the week
FREE EVENT OF THE WEEK
Image: The Lookout at 8 Bishopsgate.
The Lookout at 8 Bishopsgate
The Lookout, a new public viewing gallery at 8 Bishopsgate, has opened and is currently the highest in the City of London. From its 50th-floor perspective, it offers a view of Tower 42, symbolising the past, and 22 Bishopsgate, symbolising the future. You can book free tickets to the 2,500 sq ft gallery and it's also available for event hire, accommodating up to 335 guests.
Location: 8 Bishopsgate, EC2N 4BQ. Price: Free. Book now.
Food of the week
Mare Street Market
Image: Mare Street Market. September 2023. © MTotoe.
Mare Street Market, located in Hackney, is a trendy hangout featuring a chic market space with communal seating and a diverse culinary lineup that includes pizza, deli delights, and a charming outdoor garden. Their main restaurant, the Dining Room, offers a seasonal menu with dishes like grilled scallops. It's the perfect spot for a leisurely weekend brunch, and they also cater to vegans and vegetarians. Excitingly, they have plans for an expansion to King's Cross on the horizon, so stay tuned for more!
Location: 117 Mare St, Hackney, London E8 4RU. Instagram: @marestreetmarket
Cause of the week
Inspiring Girls UK
Image: Inspiring Girls UK.
Inspiring Girls UK, founded in 2022, is a charity focused on empowering young girls in the UK by connecting them with female role models. Through talks, workshops, and activities in schools, they break gender stereotypes and boost girls' confidence to shape their futures. Sign up as a role model or volunteer.
Website:inspiring-girls-uk.com.