South East London has a growing and exciting art scene featuring avant garde art, and up and coming creators. Better still, there’s no shortage of free-to-enter venues, a great way to discover new art forms while saving up money. So here is our list of the best galleries to get your culture fix on a budget in South Eaat London.
Bold Tendencies
The rooftop of a multi-storey car park may not sound like the most obvious place to search for great art, but Bold Tendencies is a wonderful example of how artists can take on an unloved, disused building and turn it into something special. The space hosts permanent artworks and temporary exhibits by big-name artists and newcomers, it’s also home to Frank’s Cafe – where you can enjoy a drink with a stunning panoramic city view from the top floor.
Address: Multi storey Car park, 7th-10th Floors, 95a Rye Ln, London SE15 4ST
South London Gallery
The publicly-funded South London Gallery has exhibited free art exhibitions in Camberwell since 1891. Showing work by major contemporary artists, it can lay claim to being not just one of the city’s best free galleries, but one of the best galleries in the city full-stop.
Address:65 Peckham Rd, London SE5 8UH
White Cube Bermondsey
It’s hard to overstate the influence that art dealer Jay Jopling had on British art in the 90’s and 2000’s. So when his White Cube gallery came to Bermondsey in 2011, it was confirmation of the area’s importance to the city’s art scene. It’s a vast space, where you’ll find epic exhibitions from leading artists.
Address: 144-152, Bermondsey St, London SE1 3TQ
Kristin Hjellegjerde
The Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery exhibits a large range of contemporary emerging and mid-career artists from all over the world. The gallery has multiple locations in London, Berlin, and West Palm Beach, Florida.
Address: 36 Tanner Street, London, SE1 3LD
The Copeland Gallery
Copeland Park is home to studio spaces, creative businesses and shops, not to mention a rooftop bar. Within the complex, The Copeland Gallery regularly hosts free exhibitions, all just a few minutes walk from Peckham Rye station.
Address: Unit 9, Copeland Park, 133 Copeland Rd, London SE15 3SN
A.P.T. gallery
A.P.T. (short for Art in Perpetuity Trust) is an artist-led gallery, founded in 1995 by an artist collective in a warehouse. Alongside the gallery, the building houses 42 artists’ studios, a working sculpture yard and an external public performance space. They champion artists while maintaining strong community links and aiming to create a space as accessible and free as possible.
Address: 6 Creekside, London SE8 4SA
Now Gallery
This gallery located right next to the O2 in North Greenwich has over the years developed an eclectic and unique roster of exhibitions by both emerging British and International artists. They only show four exhibitions per year, quality over quantity!
Address: Soames Walk, London SE10 0SQ
Hannah Barry Gallery
Based near Peckham Rye station, Hannah Barry has bult a reputation as a bellwether for the London art scene, with a roster of exciting and innovative artists. It’s a gallery that may be small in size, but is big on impact.
Address: 4 Holly Grove, London SE15 5DF
Xxijra Hii
Initially founded as a project space in 2020, Xxijra Hii launched as a gallery in 2023 with a remit to focus on skill sharing and artistic research. The gallery has rapidly established itself with an impressive and wide-reaching exhibition programme.
Address: Unit 4, 50 Resolution Way, London SE8 4AL
Southwark Park Galleries
This contemporary interdisciplinary arts organisation has been called “The best-kept arts secret in Britain” by Iain Sinclair. Southwark Park Galleries consists of two venues, Lake Gallery and Dilston Gallery. Created in 1984, the galleries highlight work by experimental and risk-taking emerging artists.
Address: Southwark Park, London SE16 2UA
