Always worth a visit for some historical packaging inspiration: The Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising. Notting Hill, London. www.museumofbrands.com
V&A Victoria & Albert Museum, Exhibtion Road, London - 'Telling Tales' 14th July - 18th October. At a time of heightened interest in works of so-called 'design art', made in small editions for the collector's market, Telling Tales features work by a generation of internationally regarded designers.
V&A Victoria & Albert Museum, Exhibtion Road, London - 'Theatre and Performance Temporary Exhibition' 18 March 2009 - 10 January 2010. Reg Wilson is one of Britain's most prolific performance photographers. From the 1960s he has recorded four decades of the performing arts in all their richness and variety, capturing the great and the good on stage, backstage and in the studio.
V&A Victoria & Albert Musuem, Exhibition Road, London - 'The V&A Illustration Awards' 9th June - 15th Novemeber 2009. The V&A Illustration Awards are held annually to highlight the best book and editorial illustration by UK artists published in the previous year. Their aim is to encourage, recognise and celebrate high standards of creativity in the industry.
V&A Victoria & Albert Musuem, Exhibition Road, London - 'Maharaja: the Splendour of India's Royal Courts' 10th October - 17th January 2010'. The word 'maharaja' (literally 'great king') conjures up images of fantasy and spectacle. The heyday of the maharajas began in earnest after the collapse of the Mughal empire in the early 18th century. The exhibition will open with this period of chaos and adventure and will close at the end of British rule in 1947, when Indian princes acceded their territories into the modern states of India and Pakistan.
National Portrait Gallery, near Trafalgar Square, London. 'Gay Icons' 2nd July - 18th October 2009. Gay Icons explores gay social and cultural history through the unique personal insights of ten high profile gay figures, who have selected their historical and modern icons.
National Portrait Gallery, near Trafalgar Square, London. Beatles to Bowie the 60s exposed '15th Ocover - 24th January 2010'. Beatles to Bowie explores the leading pop music personalities who helped create ‘Swinging London' in the 1960s. Bringing together 150 photographs, together with a range of memorabilia, the exhibition evocatively illustrates how image, music, fashion and performance combined to make these musicians the leading icons of their time and London the world's most important cultural capital.
Tate Modern, Bankside, London 'Pop Life 1st October 2009 - 17th January 2010'. From Warhol to the YBAs, Koons to Kippenberger, artists have mixed commerce and glamour to promote their public image. Alongside works from these artists, Pop Life also includes pieces from Damien Hirst's 2008 auction and a reconstruction of Keith Haring's Pop Shop
Tate Modern, Bankside, London 'John Baldessari 13th October - 10th January 2010' Based in Los Angeles since the 1960s, John Baldessari (b. 1931) is one of the most influential artists of his generation. Making his name as a pioneer of conceptual art in the 1960s with his text and image paintingsTate Britain, Millbank, London 'Turner Prize 2009 6th October 2009 - 3rd january 2010' The Turner Prize is a contemporary art award that was set up in 1984 to celebrate new developments in contemporary art. The prize is awarded each year to 'a British artist under fifty for an outstanding exhibition or other presentation of their work in the twelve months preceding'.