Keeping Tabs: Feeling the Heat

The Summer of Art

Jun 23, 2025

Taking in this year’s Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts

This weekend, it hit 32 degrees here in London, and it’s not a city built for heat. Gallery hopping became a sweaty proposition, though I did manage to catch a handful of the graduate exhibitions across town. I also went to an event by the guys behind Secret Cinema, which happened to be a Miley Cyrus album launch - it was surreal to be in a labyrinthine nightclub surrounded by Miley fans. This week I have:

A museum-fest in my top five exhibitions to see this summer.
Light, colour, action as we speak to artist Liz West in our latest podcast episode.
London and Paris combine in my latest diary entry.
The City & Guilds London Art School graduate exhibition is now open.

Thanks, as always, for keeping tabs on me, and have a great week ahead.

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Tab’s World

My latest articles and events for your reading pleasure.

There are Mexican landscapes, burned books, castles, a mother goddess and scholars’ rocks in a museum filled top five exhibitions to see this summer.

Light, colour, action as we speak to artist Liz West about her stunning installations in our latest podcast episode.

Catch up on my recent diary entries, interviews and more:

London and Paris combine in my latest diary entry, which spans two capital cities.
Daniel Preece is the latest interview of an artist inspired by London.
Read about Hannah Gibson’s joyful art made from recycled glass.
An interview to commemorate 100 years of photo booths, and where you can still find them in London.

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I’m a trustee of City & Guilds London Art School, and its graduate exhibition is now open. I’m biased, but there are some great artists to see here. Until 27 June, free.

Tab’s Weeks Ahead

Highlighting my top events for the weeks ahead. Let me know if you'd like to join me!

My Saturday plans aren't fixed yet, but I aim to visit the Leonardo Drew exhibition at South London Gallery - I didn’t make it last week as planned. All are welcome to join me, just drop me a line (or DM me on Substack) and I'll share the full itinerary with you so you can drop in at any point throughout the day. Saturday 28 June, 11am-3pm.

ArtCan is back with its annual postcard fundraiser, where all works sell for £40. I’ve bought multiple works from previous editions and will be at this one. Wednesday 2 July, 6-8pm - free, ticketed.

I’m on a panel discussing rejection, what it feels like and how to deal with it at a pop-up exhibition in Stoke Newington. Thursday 10 July, 6.30-8.30. £15.

The Wider Arts

Here are my top picks of culture that may be enjoyed from the comfort of your home. Paid subscribers have access to my full back catalogue of recommendations.

BUDDY FILM: Kieran Culkin and Jesse Eisenberg play two Jewish cousins who reunite to visit Poland after the death of their Holocaust-surviving grandmother in A Real Pain. Old fractures are reopened and it’s heart-breaking sometimes, helped by two superb and contrasting leads. On Disney+.

ANTHOLOGY SERIES: Inside Number 9 is an anthology where each episode is standalone, but the duo who write them appear in nearly every episode playing different characters. There are usually horror elements, and there’s always a twist - it’s impressive how they’ve come up with so many varied plots. It’s now finished after a fitting nine seasons. All on BBC iPlayer.

BIOGRAPHY: A Perfect Gentleman by Imran Ahmad is an entertaining biography of what it was like growing up as a Muslim boy in the UK, not far from where I grew up. While he grew up a few decades before me, there's a lot I could identify with in the book, including some of the inevitable culture clashes. You can follow me on Goodreads here.

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Articles I’m Reading

I recommend interesting stories largely from outside the art world. If you fancy reading offline at another time, I recommend the app Instapaper.

This is a selection of articles I found thought-provoking in one way or another; opinions expressed in the articles don’t necessarily reflect my views or those of Londonist. Paid subscribers have access to my full back catalogue of recommendations.