Recently, we shared the travel guide for designers visiting Berlin. Today’s post continues the series and offers you the must-visit places in London.
London belongs to the cities where the visuals present a real problem of choice, with a great variety of museums and galleries, markets and bookstores, cafes, parks, rooftops, and other incredible locations. Based on recommendations from the locals, we’ve prepared a list of places to be visited and seen by designers who are going to land in the capital of Britain.
Brief intro about our London experts:
224-238 Kensington High St, London W8 6AG
All four of the London experts we asked have included The Design Museum in the recommendation list. Search for expositions of product, industrial, graphic, fashion, and architectural design, as well as a Designer Maker User, which is a permanent exhibition displaying an interaction of three roles: Designer, Maker, and User. Regular public meetings, workshops, courses, or family events are very common there.
“Stunning architecture of the building itself is a must-visit place for all designers,” says Anna Ginzburg.
Cromwell Road, London SW7 2RL
Just imagine, V&A has over 2.3 million art and design exhibits. You can get lost for a whole day. The museum features numerous national collections of Great Britain. There you can study the history of architecture, furniture, fashion, textiles, photography, sculpture, painting, jewelry, glass, ceramics, weapons, book industry, Asian art and design, theater and performance.
Bankside, London SE1 9TG
Tate Modern is a free museum. It is located on the bank of the Thames in the building of the decommissioned Bankside power plant. On the 10th floor, there is an incredible terrace and a cafe overlooking the city center. After the museum, walk through the Millennium Bridge—yep, the one from “Harry Potter”—directly to Saint Paul’s, the main and first cathedral in London.
“Most London museums are free. You can often see donation banks at the entrance and mistake them for a place to buy tickets,” says Sergiy Voronov.
Duke of York’s HQ, King’s Rd, Chelsea, London SW3 4RY
This one is a gallery with a minimalist interior and a provocative modern art collection.
Kensington Gardens, London W2 3XA
One of the most popular art spaces of contemporary art is situated in the Kensington Gardens. It neighbors with Chucs Restaurant&Café designed by architect Zaha Hadid.
Bankside, London SE1 9TG
The Tate Modern Bookshop is the home for catalogs of previous and current exhibitions of the Tate Modern museum, countless illustrated children’s books, and publications of Tate Publishing, the London leader in the visual arts area.
69 Rivington Street, London EC2A 3AY
If you’re looking for books on contemporary art and visual culture, object and graphics design, fashion, architecture, photography, painting, or visual art theory, go straight to the Artwords Bookshop.
12 Duke of York Square London, SW3 4LY
A small store selling books from the world-famous Taschen Publishing House.
Regent’s Canal Towpath, Kings Cross, London N1C 4LW
A lively bookshop on the water that sells books and magazines and plays vinyl records.
191 Portobello Rd, Notting Hill, London W11 2ED
Electric Cinema is one of the oldest operating cinemas in Britain; its impressive interior with velour dark red sofas will impress you.
Cinema hunters are highly recommended to explore London rooftops. Rooftop Film Club hosts showings on various rooftops, but only in warm weather. So, keep this advice until the warm season.
9 Conduit St, Mayfair, London W1S 2XG
The Sketch bar is worth visiting not just for a unique gastronomic experience but also to get some pink inspiration. The interior was created by designer India Mahdavi.
“The restaurant is a pink dream with the most Instagramish interior you can imagine, even in lavatories. Here, you’ll be feasted with Michelin meals followed by a classic British afternoon tea,” Albina Cholak says.
15 Glasshouse Street, London W1B 4DY
The Green Bar at Hotel Cafe Royal is a portal to the extravagant world of the late 19th-century era. A spectacular interior and a bar where you can check out cocktails made according to a traditional English formula.
15 Broadway Market, London E8 4PH
A cafe with dainty pastry, a shop, and a creative studio gathered under the roof of Sans Père. It is situated at the very center of the Shoreditch district. That is the place where the visual ideas of Wes Anderson came true.
73A Stoke Newington Church St. London, N16 0AS
The Hackney Flea Market is a gathering place for passionate fans of vintage decor. It appeared spontaneously at Stoke Newington’s Church Street five years ago. Since then, it has grown to a monthly market at weekends. Now, it’s the place to look for unique things. You can find everything from synthesizers to furniture and get acquainted with young artists.
91 Brick Ln, London E1 6QR
Filled with noise, color, and lifestyle, Brick Lane is a vibrant blend of Indian curry, freshly baked bagels, Chinese flavors, and healthy sweets. It’s a real alternative to classic British burgers. There are also many independent music studios, small craft shops, hip clubs, and bars.
Columbia Rd, London E2 7RG
Columbia Flower Market explodes with color every week. It’s better to come in the morning since it becomes really crowded later.
London N1 6BY
That’s a must-see for the fans of hipster districts. The Shoreditch is all about graffiti on every second building, dozens of cafes, shops and studios.
“There’s a great number of design spots! If you give up to them without control, you’ll probably get lost in that variety. The capital of Britain is awake 24/7, even at night the number of people outside doesn’t decrease” says Max Shkinder.
Silk St, London EC2Y 8DS
Barbican is the biggest art center of its kind in Europe. If you come here, be sure you’ll get a concert of classical or contemporary music, a theater performance, a film showing, or an art exhibition. The local library is also worth paying attention to.
20 Fenchurch St, London EC3M 8AF
The lovers who combine nature and cocktail parties will like the Sky Garden, a glass dome garden with an incredible city view. Enjoy live music and light cocktails offered there.
London TW10 5HS
Richmond Park is a place to hide from the city noise and dynamics. The royal park was founded by Charles I in the 17th century as a 40-acre reindeer reserve and flower garden. Deers got used to people and just walked among them.
20-21 Newman St, Fitzrovia, London W1T 1PG
A trendy, surrealistic hotel filled with art objects from furniture to bar glasses. It offers an interesting cocktail card and an inspirational terrace.
Granary Square, Kings Cross, London N1C 4AA
Central Saint Martins College is located in the square near the canal with English bars and fountains. You are also recommended to take a guest pass to the local library.
School books do not tell about one of the columns in Trafalgar Square, where the exposition of contemporary sculpture is regularly refreshed.
Regent St, Carnaby, London W1B 5AH
Old British department store made in the style of the Tudor times.
105-119 Brentfield Rd, London NW10 8LD
BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir is the first authentic Hindu temple in the UK, and it has incredibly fascinating architectural details.
The Mall, St. James’s, London SW1Y 5AH
A modern cultural center where you can visit a gallery, theater, bookstore, and two cinema halls.
An excellent way to end a day in London is to watch the sunset near the Royal Observatory (Prime Meridian) in Greenwich. You can also take a walk along the embankment with pubs and come around to the famous fish market. Be sure to visit Greenwich University, which you could see in the Thor movie.
The original article was published on Telegraf Design
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