Tate Britain:
NFT Map: 21
Address: London SW1P 4RG
Phone: 020 7887 8888
Website: www.tate.org.uk/britain
Hours: Open 10am – 6pm Saturday to Thursday, and until 10pm on Fridays. Last admission to special exhibitions is 45 minutes before closing time.
Tate Modern:
NFT Map: 105
Address: London SE1 9TG
Phone: 020 7887 8888
Website: www.tate.org.uk/modern
Hours: Open 10am—6pm daily. Last admission to special exhibitions is 45 minutes before closing time.
In a city renowned for its galleries and museums, London’s Tate galleries shine from the banks of the Thames. The first Tate was founded in 1897 as the National Gallery of British Art, but was renamed soon afterwards after its main patron Henry Tate—he of Tate and Lyle and the sugar cube. Originally on the site of the former Millbank Prison (where Tate Britain remains), the gallery gradually expanded and divided its collection over the four sites, two in London, one in Liverpool and the last in St Ives. In London, Tate Britain houses British art dating from 1500 to the present day, while Tate Modern was created to house—yes you’ve guessed it—more modern work from 1900 to the present day, and is reportedly the most visited modern art gallery in the world.
The two Tates carry the same trendy Tate logo and the shops contain much of the same avant-garde merchandise with a great range of children’s stuff available in both. But while the more traditional Tate Britain more closely resembles the National Gallery in architectural and artistic flavour, Tate Modern has a very hip feel and draws a slightly broader audience, in part due to its location on the increasingly buzzy South Bank.
Both museums have popular restaurants and cafes, but to encourage those without a membership to sign up, each offers an exclusive members’ room. These provide the best views, nicest toilets, designated staff and ever so slightly self-important customers, and are always a safe bet to impress a date.
Based in the former Bankside Power Station, Tate Modern has proved to be an extremely popular attraction for tourists and Londoners alike since its opening in 2000. It houses the national collection of modern art, so expect plenty of inspirational and challenging works alongside exhibits that look like your cat sicked them up. The temporary art installations of the five-storey tall Turbine Hall provide much of the draw to the gallery. This huge space displays specially commissioned works from October to April of each year—a programme which was intended to run for only five years, but was extended due to its popularity. Quirky exhibitions fill the vast Turbine Hall, like Olafur Eliasson’s ‘Weather Project’ which encouraged visitors to lie back on the floor in their thousands, gazing at the shadows cast by the synthetic sun. Ai Wei Wei’s Sunflower Seeds, in 2010/11, was probably his most ambitious and attention-grabbing work before going MIA—ironically and probably due to the unwanted exposure it brought to the Chinese government. That and the fact punters had to be forbidden from walking on the seeds due to the fine dust the porcelain they were made from produced which could have been inhaled and damage the lungs. Again, ironically. As always, we await with baited breath who will fill the Turbine Hall and with what. If it all seems like you could have created better art yourself, then try one of the gallery’s excellent workshops or courses and give it a go.
The Tate Britain boasts the most comprehensive collection of British art in the world, and is home to the annual and unmissable Turner Prize show. Stone steps lead up to the portico and once inside, the Duveen Galleries’ ethereal sculptures lie straight ahead, giving the first taste of a breathtaking collection of artwork. Tate Britain’s collection is divided chronologically and dedicates space exclusively to notable artists, such as Turner, Blake and Constable. The gallery also includes significant works by William Hogarth, Stanley Spencer and Francis Bacon. Look out for the themed guides to suit your mood, such as “The I’ve Just Split Up”, “The I’m In A Hurry” and “The I Haven’t Been Here For Ages” collections: a highly endearing way ease you through the 500 years of exhibits.