Art After Dark: The Easy Way to Experience London’s Art Scene This February

If you often feel like the London art scene is something you mean to engage with, but rarely quite get around to between work, family life and everything else, consider this your in.

Art After Dark returns from 3–10 February, offering a week of free, easy-to-dip-into art and culture across the West End, all designed to work around real life rather than demand a whole day.

Run by Art of London, the programme brings together large-scale public artworks, late-night gallery openings and music-led experiences, meaning you can catch something on the way home from work, after dinner or as part of an evening out. One of the highlights is a rare after-hours DJ set inside the National Gallery, offering the chance to experience one of London’s most iconic spaces in a completely different way.

This year’s headline moment comes from London-based artist Lakwena Maciver, whose vibrant new installation Rise and Shine will take over Piccadilly Circus. The seven-metre artwork, built from stacked disco lightboxes, draws on Caribbean sound system culture, disco dance floors and Black British music history, bringing colour, energy and spectacle to one of the city’s busiest crossroads.

Throughout the week, digital artworks will light up the Piccadilly Lights and West End screens, while late-night gallery openings, guided Gallery Hop! tours and live performances unfold across more than 30 local venues, from bars and clubs to restaurants. There is also an intimate artist Q&A with Lakwena, hosted in partnership with Apple Music.

Free, flexible and genuinely accessible, Art After Dark is ideal if you want to reconnect with London’s cultural life without committing to a full day or weekend. Think of it as culture that fits neatly around your diary.

Follow @theartofldn on Instagram for updates and programme highlights.