Serpentine Galleries

Over het museum

Serpentine has shown contemporary art since 1970 and has been a free public gallery from the start. Its two sites stand on either side of the Serpentine Bridge in Kensington Gardens. Each site presents about three exhibitions a year of art, design, architecture and performance.

Serpentine South is housed in a former tea pavilion designed by J. Grey West and built in 1934, which replaced earlier refreshment rooms from 1855. It opened as a gallery in 1970 and at first showed young British artists; for its first three years it had no central heating and opened only in summer. Serpentine North opened in 2013 in a classical nineteenth-century brick building that was a gunpowder store until the early 1960s. Its two barrel-vaulted powder rooms are now exhibition spaces, and a light-filled extension by Zaha Hadid houses the restaurant.

Every summer a different architect designs a temporary Pavilion on the lawn beside Serpentine South, which serves as a meeting place and venue for live events. Serpentine is a registered charity and receives only a small share of its income from public funding. Its programme has included work by artists such as Hilma af Klint, Christo and Jeanne-Claude and Marina Abramović, and a permanent work by Ian Hamilton Finlay stands in the grounds of Serpentine South.

Hoogtepunten

• Free contemporary art exhibitions at Serpentine South and Serpentine North
• The annual summer Serpentine Pavilion by a different architect each year
• Zaha Hadid extension and former gunpowder store at Serpentine North
• Ian Hamilton Finlay benches and stone circle outside Serpentine South
• Koenig Books art bookshop at Serpentine South

Vaste collectie

• Ian Hamilton Finlay benches – A permanent work of eight poetry benches, a tree plaque and a stone circle naming the trees of Kensington Gardens, outside the entrance to Serpentine South.

Opgericht

1970

Beheerder

Serpentine Galleries (registered charity)

Directie

Julia Peyton-Jones

Bezoekers per jaar

ca. 995.335

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

De toegang is gratis.

The exhibitions are free and open to all; visitors are advised to book a free ticket. Concession tickets (children, seniors, students and visitors with access requirements) are offered for live events only. Private exhibition tours cost £300 for one site (45 minutes) or £450 for both sites (1 hour 30 minutes), including VAT.

Toegankelijkheid

• Rolstoeltoegankelijk
• Lift: geen informatie
• Aangepast toilet: geen informatie
• Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats: geen informatie
• Hulphonden welkom
• Tastmodellen / voelbare objecten: geen informatie
• Rondleidingen in gebarentaal: geen informatie
• Informatie in eenvoudige taal: geen informatie
• Audiodescriptie

Both galleries have step-free access and facilities for visitors with disabilities. The free Bloomberg Connects digital guide includes audio description, and a visual story helps visitors prepare for the visit. The museum cannot accommodate large holdalls, rucksacks or wheelie bags; one cabin-sized personal bag is allowed per visitor. Assistance dogs are welcome in the galleries, but no other animals. Blue Badge bays can be found through the Westminster and Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea disabled parking pages.

Kinderen & gezin

Erg geschikt voor kinderen & gezinnen

• Gezinsrondleidingen & workshops
• Kinderwagenvriendelijk
• Verschoonruimte

Families are welcome, children may talk and make some noise, and drawing in pencil on paper is encouraged in the galleries. Buggies are welcome and must be kept with you. Both galleries have toilets with baby changing, and free nappies and wipes are available at the lobby desks. Stools can be borrowed from staff, and the bookshop at Serpentine South has a selection of children's books. A family day is held at the Pavilion in summer.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

Cycle hire docking stations are opposite both galleries and at Seville Street, South Carriage Drive and Bayswater Road; Sheffield stands are at both galleries. Serpentine North and Serpentine South are a short walk (0.3 miles) apart.

Service & horeca

• Café
• Restaurant
• Museumwinkel
• Garderobe: niet aanwezig

Friends Of Ours is the café and restaurant at Serpentine North, serving brunch, lunch, coffee and drinks. The Koenig Books bookshop is at Serpentine South and the Serpentine Shop at Serpentine North. There is no cloakroom. Picnics are welcome on the lawn.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

• Ruimtes te huur
• Privéfeesten
• Zakelijke evenementen

Serpentine South, Serpentine North, the Magazine (the Zaha Hadid extension) and the summer Pavilion can be hired for receptions, dinners, product launches, fashion shows and filming. Capacity depends on the exhibition on view.

Je bezoek plannen