V&A East Museum opened its doors for the first time on Saturday 18 April as part of East Bank, the new cultural quarter of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London. 

V&A East Museum © Niall Hodson

Co-created with young people, creatives, and those living, working and studying in east London, V&A East Museum celebrates making and creativity’s power to bring change around the world. Set across a bright, spacious five-storey building, V&A East Museum is a showcase of creativity and a celebration of east London, UK and global makers.

V&A East Museum © Hufton+Crow

V&A East Museum completes the V&A East project – one of the UK’s biggest new museum projects of the decade – as the sister site to V&A East Storehouse, which opened in May 2025. Both sites are part of the East Bank partnership, rooted in the diverse communities of east London and a reflection of the creative spirit and the legacy of the London 2012 Games.

East Bank is the UK’s newest culture and education quarter and is the single biggest investment in London’s cultural landscape since the Great Exhibition of 1851 and is expected to welcome over 1.5 million visitors a year and generate £1.5 billion for London’s economy.

V&A East Museum © Hufton+Crow

Gus Casely-Hayford, V&A East Director, said: “Over 10 years in the making, we’re delighted to open V&A East Museum, a space created with and for our audiences, including young people and east Londoners, in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Sister site to V&A East Storehouse, it’s part of East Bank and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic legacy. Everyone is welcome at V&A East Museum.”

‘A Place Beyond’ by Thomas J Price outside of London’s V&A East Museum. David Parry and PA Media Assignments for the V&A.

Behind its doors – in front of which stands Thomas J Price’s 18ft sculpture, A Place Beyond – V&A East Museum opens its first landmark multisensory exhibition, The Music is Black: A British Story – the largest ever exhibition on the impact of Black British music on the UK and around the world.

Featuring over 200 objects from the V&A’s collection and important loans, at its heart it celebrates the emergence of eight distinct Black British genres from 2 tone to lovers rock, Brit funk, jungle, drum & bass, trip hop, UK garage and grime. Tracing 125 years of Black British music, the exhibition brings together hidden stories of early legends and contemporary artists through objects from groundbreaking musician Winifred Atwell’s piano to Stormzy’s iconic 2019 Glastonbury vest designed by Banksy, originally conceived on the back of a napkin.

Inside V&A East Museum’s inaugural exhibition, The Music is Black: A British Story © David Parry for the V&A

V&A East Museum’s new free permanent Why We Make galleries offer a fresh look at contemporary culture through the V&A’s collections. The galleries hold over 500 objects spanning art, architecture, design, performance, and fashion.

Inside V&A East Museum’s Why We Make galleries © David Parry for the V&A

V&A East Museum also opens with New Work, a new twice yearly rotating programme of creative commissions. The inaugural edition unveils newly commissioned works responding to the theme ‘Making East London’, an exploration of the area’s histories, communities and possible futures.

Inside V&A East Museum © Hufton+Crow

V&A East Museum’s opening programme of free live events includes a takeover by DJ Nia Archives, as well as artist-led workshops, conversations and live performances. Visitors can also enjoy Café Jikoni, an exciting partnership with the restaurant group known for ‘cooking across borders’.

If you or your group would like to enjoy a visit to VA& East on a tailor-made tour of London, please do contact our friendly team today. Or perhaps you would like to experience a cultural tour of the United Kingdom? If so, we can help!