Peggy Guggenheim’s Influential London Gallery Celebrated in Upcoming Exhibition

The exhibition “Peggy Guggenheim in London” will showcase over 100 works celebrating Guggenheim’s brief yet impactful London gallery, Guggenheim Jeune. It will run from April 25 to October 19, 2026, in Venice, before moving to the Royal Academy in London from November 21, 2026, to March 14, 2027. The show focuses on Guggenheim’s contribution to contemporary art in 20th-century Britain.

An upcoming exhibition titled “Peggy Guggenheim in London: The Making of a Collector” is set to shine a light on the influential yet brief legacy of Peggy Guggenheim’s London gallery, Guggenheim Jeune. Open from April 25 to October 19, 2026, at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, the show will feature over 100 works and will then move to London’s Royal Academy from November 21, 2026, to March 14, 2027.

Guggenheim Jeune opened its doors in January 1938 and lasted only 18 months, yet it had a significant impact on contemporary art in the UK. Grazina Subelyte, an associate curator at the Venice collection, shares, “The story we want to tell focuses on Guggenheim’s enormous personal contribution to the visibility and acceptance of contemporary art in London at that time.” She highlighted the gallery’s showcase of prevailing artists like Salvador Dali, Henry Moore, and Piet Mondrian in an era when London lacked a platform for modern art.

The gallery’s bold exhibition of contemporary sculpture in April 1938 marked a major milestone in art history. It included prominent figures like Jean Arp and Constantin Brâncuși, which was so groundbreaking that it required certification from the Tate’s director to confirm it was truly sculpture, avoiding import duty for Guggenheim.

In total, Guggenheim Jeune hosted over 20 exhibitions before World War II brought its closure. Among these was the first solo show in London for Vasily Kandinsky, featuring a key work titled “Dominant Curve” (1936). The gallery also showcased the first major collage group show in Britain and works from artists, including Cedric Morris and Yves Tanguy. “This was the first exhibition of surrealism Peggy ever organised—and surrealism and abstraction would be the art movements she would always be connected with,” noted Subelyte.

The exhibition also reflects Guggenheim’s interest in progressive education, which led her to showcase work by children, including a young Lucian Freud’s painting “Old Men Running” (1936). Simon Grant, editor of “Picpus” magazine and co-curator of the exhibition, revealed, “We have almost no archival material about the exhibition, which took place in October 1938.” He added that this event marked the first time a Freud work was displayed in a public gallery.

Guggenheim’s risk-taking spirit is evident in her willingness to promote unknown artists, many who subsequently became household names. Grant pointed out, “Take the Austrian Mexican painter Wolfgang Paalen; he was fairly unknown in the UK at the time, and she gave him a show.” Despite the gallery’s success in showcasing contemporary art, it ultimately struggled financially. Guggenheim closed it with hopes of establishing a Museum of Modern Art in London, a plan derailed by the war. The collection of artists’ works that graced her London gallery eventually found a home in her palazzo in Venice, alongside her broader legacy in contemporary art.

The upcoming exhibition celebrating Peggy Guggenheim’s London gallery illustrates her significant yet brief impact on the art scene. With over 100 works on display, it highlights not only the pioneering artists of her time but also her dedication to modern art. Though Guggenheim Jeune was a financial failure, its influence endures, shaping the future of contemporary art in Britain and beyond.

Original Source: www.theartnewspaper.com