V&A South Kensington is the world's greatest museum of art and design, with collections unrivalled in their scope and diversity. Discover 3000 years' worth of amazing artefacts from many of the world's richest cultures including ceramics, furniture, fashion, glass, jewellery, metalwork, photographs, sculpture, textiles and paintings.
GALLERIES
Architecture: includes architectural drawings, photographs, whole rooms and parts of buildings
Asia: objects from East Asia, South and South-East Asia, and the Middle East
Ceramics: from ancient Egyptian artefacts to contemporary studio pottery and ceramics
Contemporary: exhibitions, events and displays of the best of today's art, design and visual culture
Fashion & Jewellery: fashionable dress, jewellery and accessories from the 17th century to the present day
Furniture: over 14,000 pieces from Britain, Europe and America, from the Middle Ages to the present day
Glass: explore the 4000-year history of glass, from the Middle East, Europe and the Western world
History, Periods & Styles: the V&A's collections cross a multitude of periods and design styles
Metalwork: silver, ironwork, arms, armour, enamels, brasswork, pewter and medieval metalwork
Paintings & Drawings: watercolours, pastels, portrait miniatures, oil paintings, illustrations, posters, cartoons
Photography: the Photography collection began in 1852 and now holds over 500,000 images
Prints & Books: everything from comics and children's literature to the art, craft and design of the book
Sculpture: explore the world's most comprehensive holding of post-classical European sculpture
Textiles: the national collection of Textiles covers a period of more than 2000 years. It has a broad geographic range with a particular emphasis on Europe
Theatre & Performance: the Theatre and Performance collections cover a vast range of unique materials, costumes, objects and records of the UK's performance heritage
Guided tours
The V&A's collections span 2,000 years of art in virtually every medium, from many parts of the world. Guided tours give visitors the opportunity to reflect on some of these treasures, their history and the people who inhabited them.
Tours start at the Meeting Point in the Grand Entrance at the following times: 10.30, 11.30, 12.30, 13.30, 14.30 and 15.30. Tours last approximately one hour. Tours include highlights of the recently opened Medieval & Renaissance Galleries, the British Galleries and introductory tours of the collections.
Tours of the Theatre & Performance galleries take place at 14.00, Monday- Friday (excluding Bank Holidays).
Special tours run every first Friday of the month, starting from the Meeting Point in the Grand Entrance at 19.00.
Good to know:
- Admission to the V&A is free however some exhibitions and events carry a charge.
- Cloakrooms are free; a voluntary donation is welcome.
- Bags larger than 56cm x 45cm x 25cm (22ins x 18ins x 10ins) will not be accepted.
- The V&A is spread over seven levels and a number of interconnecting buildings.
- You may take photographs or use a video camera in the galleries, but not with a tripod, monopod or supplementary video lighting. Flash photography is permitted. Photography and video is not allowed in the Raphael Galley, The William and Judith Bollinger Jewellery Gallery, special exhibitions or where an object’s label indicates a private loan.
Corporate and private hire
Not only is the Victoria and Albert Museum one of the world’s great museums, it is also a magnificent Victorian building with remarkable rooms that offer many possibilities for entertaining in a prestigious central London location.
A variety of options for entertaining are available at both sites, including evening receptions and dinners with a private view of current exhibitions. Spaces are also available for daytime hire.
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