Best Art Exhibitions In London, Paris and New York 2026

Whether you're an artist looking for shows to apply to or an art lover looking for something to see this year, here's what's happening across three of the biggest art cities in the world.

London Art Exhibitions 2026

London's art scene never slows down. From the major institutions to the smaller independent galleries, there's always something worth seeing.

The big institutions run their headline shows throughout the year. Tate Modern, the Hayward Gallery, the Barbican and the Royal Academy are the obvious starting points for large scale exhibitions.

But some of the most exciting work in London isn't in the big galleries. It's in the independent spaces across Peckham, Deptford, Dalston and Hackney Wick. Smaller galleries, artist led shows and pop up exhibitions are where you'll find the freshest work from emerging artists.

If you're an artist looking to exhibit in London, open calls are the best route in. Most independent galleries run rolling open calls throughout the year.

Streeters Gallery London: 11 to 13 September 2026. Weekend group show for emerging artists. All mediums welcome. No experience needed. Open call live now at streetersgallery.net.

Paris Art Exhibitions 2026

Paris is one of the most important art cities in the world and it's not just about the Louvre. The contemporary art scene across Belleville, Le Marais, Pantin and Montreuil is thriving.

The Palais de Tokyo, Centre Pompidou and the Fondation Louis Vuitton are the flagship venues. But the real energy is in the smaller galleries and project spaces scattered across the city. Paris has a tradition of supporting emerging artists through group shows and open calls that goes back decades.

For artists looking to exhibit in Paris, the scene is more accessible than you might think. A growing number of galleries run English language open calls and welcome international submissions.

Streeters Gallery Paris: 4 to 6 September 2026. Weekend group show for emerging artists. All mediums welcome. Open call live now at streetersgallery.net.

New York Art Exhibitions 2026

New York is the art capital of the world. Chelsea, the Lower East Side, Tribeca, Bushwick and Williamsburg each have their own gallery ecosystems.

The Whitney, MoMA, the Guggenheim and the New Museum anchor the city's exhibition calendar. But the commercial gallery scene in Chelsea alone has over 300 galleries within a few blocks.

For emerging artists, New York can feel intimidating. Most Chelsea galleries deal with established artists and high price points. But the Lower East Side and Bushwick scenes are far more accessible. Open calls, group shows and artist led spaces make it possible to exhibit in New York without gallery representation.

Tribeca has emerged as a strong location for contemporary group shows, sitting between the commercial gallery world of Chelsea and the independent energy of the Lower East Side.

Streeters Gallery New York: 20 to 23 November 2026. Four day group show at 101 Reade St, Tribeca. All mediums welcome. No experience needed. Open call live now at streetersgallery.net.

How to find exhibition opportunities

If you're an artist looking for open calls and exhibition opportunities in 2026, here's where to search.

Follow galleries on Instagram. Most open calls are announced on social media before anywhere else. Follow the galleries and spaces you'd want to show with and turn on post notifications.

Check open call listing sites. Websites like Curatorial.org, ArtConnect, Wooloo and Call for Entry aggregate open calls from galleries worldwide. Set up alerts for your city and medium.

Join artist communities. Facebook groups, Reddit communities and Discord servers for artists regularly share open calls and exhibition opportunities. The community often knows about opportunities before they're publicly listed.

Sign up for gallery newsletters. If there's a gallery you want to exhibit with, get on their mailing list. You'll hear about open calls first.

Apply to Streeters Gallery. Our open call is always live. We review every submission based on the work. All mediums welcome. No experience needed. No CV required.

What to look for in an exhibition

Not every exhibition is worth your time or money. Here's a quick checklist.

Does the gallery have a real audience? Check past show photos and social media engagement.

Is the venue a real physical space? Some "exhibitions" are just websites.

Is the fee reasonable? Group show fees between £50 and £200 are standard. Over £300 needs strong justification.

Does the gallery promote the show? If they don't promote it before the opening, the audience will be thin.

Do they take commission? Some galleries charge a fee and commission. Look for galleries that do one or the other, not both.

Upcoming Streeters Gallery shows

Paris: 4 to 6 September 2026 London: 11 to 13 September 2026 New York (Tribeca): 20 to 23 November 2026

All mediums. No experience needed. Zero commission on sales. Sister gallery of The Holy Art, which has exhibited over 25,000 artists across nine cities worldwide.

Apply at streetersgallery.net

Streeters Gallery. The gallery that actually lets you in.