Words By Allegra Salvadori

This season, Europe’s leading institutions invite visitors to rethink the language of form, identity, and memory. Here are six unmissable exhibitions redefining culture across centuries and continents.

1. Fiona Tan: Monomania (Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 4 July–14 September)

For the first time in its history, the Rijksmuseum entrusts a major exhibition to a contemporary artist, Fiona Tan. In a bold curatorial debut, the multimedia Indonesia-born Dutch artist explores the 19th-century emergence of psychiatry and how the human psyche was perceived, diagnosed, and portrayed through art. Juxtaposing historical works by Géricault, Goya, and Munch with objects from the Rijksmuseum’s collection, Tan reframes past narratives with a contemporary lens. The exhibition includes new work by the artist herself, made specifically for this show.

• 📅 Dates: 4 July – 14 September 2025
• 🏛 Museum: Rijksmuseum, Philips Wing
• 📍 Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
• 🔗 Website: Rijksmuseum
• 📷 Instagram: Rijksmuseum

2. Jenny Saville: The Anatomy of Painting (National Portrait Gallery, London, 20 June –7 September)

Jenny Saville: The Anatomy of Painting is the UK’s largest survey of the acclaimed British artist, tracing her bold reinvention of figurative painting. From monumental nudes to recent works, the exhibition spans 30 years of Saville’s visceral engagement with the body, beauty, and the act of painting itself. Featuring 45 pieces drawn from global collections, it offers a rare look at her evolving dialogue with art history and process.

• 📅 Dates: 20 June – 7 September 2025
• 🏛 Museum: National Portrait Gallery
• 📍 Location: London, United Kingdom
• 🔗 Website: National Portrait Gallery
• 📷 Instagram: @nationalportraitgallery

3. Radical! Women Artists and Modernism (Belvedere Museum, Vienna, 18 June–12 October)

Radical! Women Artists and Modernism revisits early 20th-century art through a new lens, spotlighting the work of overlooked female artists from Europe, the Middle East, and beyond.Rather than following fixed styles or movements, the exhibition honours the personal visions and resilience of these trailblazing women—whose themes remain powerfully relevant today.Featuring works by Inji Efflatoun, Sonia Delaunay, Fahrelnissa Zeid, and Claude Cahun, the show redefines modernism as a richly diverse and deeply human story.

• 📅 Dates: 18 June – 12 October 2025
• 🏛 Museum: Belvedere Museum (Lower Belvedere)
• 📍 Location: Vienna, Austria
• 🔗 Website: Belvedere
• 📷 Instagram: @Belvedere

4. Warhol, Pollock and Other American Spaces (Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, 21 October-25 January 2026)

Warhol / Pollock and American Spaces at Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza explores the unexpected parallels between two icons of 20th-century art. From large-scale abstraction to spatial experimentation, the exhibition reveals how both artists—though seemingly worlds apart—used painting as a layered, autobiographical act.

• 📅 Dates: 21 October 2025 – 25 January 2026 (note: autumn opening, but can be included as a major upcoming show)
• 🏛 Museum: Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza
• 📍 Location: Madrid, Spain
• 🔗 Website: Thyssen
• 📷 Instagram: @Thyssen

5. Hiroshige: Artist of the Open Road (British Museum, London, 1 May-7 September)

Hiroshige: Artist of the Open Road at the British Museum offers a poetic journey through 19th-century Japan, capturing fleeting beauty, travel, and urban life with masterful serenity. This rare London retrospective reveals Hiroshige’s enduring influence—from Edo-era fans to Van Gogh and beyond.

• 📅 Dates: 1 May – 7 September 2025
• 🏛 Museum: British Museum (Room 35, Joseph Hotung Gallery)
• 📍 Location: London, United Kingdom
• 🔗 Website: British Museum
• 📷 Instagram: @BritishMuseum

6. Ernesto Neto: Nosso Barco Tambor Terra (Grand Palais Éphémère, Paris, 6 June – 25 July)

Ernesto Neto: Nosso Barco Tambor Terra transforms the Grand Palais into an immersive, multisensory landscape crafted from crochet, bark, spices, and sound. Inspired by ancestral rituals and maritime memory, the installation invites visitors into a poetic communion of rhythm, nature, and shared experience.

• 📅 Dates: 6 June – 25 July 2025
• 🏛 Museum: Grand Palais Éphémère
• 📍 Location: Paris, France
• 🔗 Website: Grand Palais
• 📷 Instagram: @grandpalaisrmn