artmappa
Yinka Shonibare and Thomas Gainsborough: A Conversation
Group show Upcoming

Yinka Shonibare and Thomas Gainsborough: A Conversation

15 Oct 2026 — 7 Feb 2027 at The National Gallery · London
One of Britain's most celebrated works is playfully reimagined by British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare. This exhibition explores a creative conversation between Shonibare's contemporary practice and the legacy of Thomas Gainsborough, examining how historical masterworks can be reinterpreted through a modern lens. The show brings together works that challenge, celebrate, and expand upon the traditions of British art.

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About the artist

Yinka Shonibare
Yinka Shonibare
1962 · contemporary art

Yinka Shonibare is a British artist whose work explores cultural identity, colonialism and post-colonialism within the contemporary context of globalisation. A hallmark of his art is the brightly coloured Ankara/batik fabric he uses. As Shonibare is paralysed on one side of his body, he uses…

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Thomas Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough
1727–1788 · Rococo

Thomas Gainsborough was an English painter, draughtsman and printmaker who specialised in portrait and landscape painting. Along with his rival Sir Joshua Reynolds, he was one of the most important British artists of the 18th century. He painted quickly, and the works of his maturity are…

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About the venue

The National Gallery
The National Gallery · London

The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of more than 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current director of the National Gallery is Gabriele Finaldi.

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