Overview

Today, London is regarded as one of the most important global art centres and the galleries of Mayfair are considered to be the best in the entire city. With a variety of art exhibitions showcasing paintings, sculpture, photography, installations as well as rare collectors’ items, Mayfair is frequented by jet-setting art crowds.

In three hours together we will visit some of the carefully selected privately-owned art galleries and auction houses, and also talk about Mayfair's stories, past and present. These small galleries are rarely crowded and, unlike in big museums, the exhibitions change often so you will never see the same artworks twice, even when you book this tour again.

You do not have to be a collector though or indeed know anything about art in order to enjoy the rich offerings of this historic and culturally significant district, internationally renowned as a vibrant hub of creativity and craftsmanship, where the worlds of art, fashion and luxury meet.

Description

Stop At: Sotheby's, 34-35 New Bond Street, London W1S2RT

Located in the heart of London's Mayfair district, Sotheby's auctions offer an extraordinary diversity of objects and works of art from Impressionist & Modern Art and Contemporary Art to Old Master Paintings, 19th Century European Art and Islamic Art, as well as Decorative Art from Porcelain and Silver to French & English Furniture amongst many others.

Sotheby’s conducts some 250 auctions a year in more than 70 categories therefore there is always something interesting to see.

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Christie's, 8 King Street, St. James's, London WC2E8HN

Christie's, the world's oldest fine art auctioneer, has sold fine art, furniture, jewelry and wine since James Christie conducted the first sale in London on 5 December 1766. Ever since Christie's has continued to provide the perfect backdrop for the sales of the world's finest collections and greatest works of art before their auction.

Christie's heads numerous auctions each year so there is always something to see and, there is an art cafe for a possible puit-stop

Duration: 30 minutes

Stop At: Bond Street, London

Bond Street was built up in the 1720s, and by the end of the 18th century was a popular place for the upper-class residents of Mayfair to socialise. Bond Street has been mentioned in several works of literature, including Jane Austen’s novel Sense and Sensibility and Virginia Woolf’s 1925 novel Mrs Dalloway. In Suzanna Clarke’s novel Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, Bond Street is described as having “the most fashionable shops in all the kingdom”. Bond Street is also a square on the British Monopoly board.

From Henry Moore's sculpture on top of the former Time Life building to a bust of the Egyptian Goddess Sekhmet, the main artery of the Mayfair is full of art surprises, which most people often fail to notice.

Duration: 20 minutes

Stop At: Mayfair, London

In the early 20th century, Cork street became associated with the art world, and is considered to be one of the United Kingdom's "most important art hubs", owing in part to its proximity to the Royal Academy. Its galleries have launched the careers of many major modern artists in Britain; the Mayor Gallery was the venue for the first London exhibitions of Francis Bacon, Max Ernst, Paul Klee, and Joan Miró, and Peggy Guggenheim opened her own gallery at number 30 in 1938.

In 2023, 16 art galleries called Cork street their home and we will visit some of them.

Duration: 40 minutes

Stop At: Sprueth Magers, 7A Grafton Street, London W1S4EJ

This building has a long history of hosting a variety of art galleries. The Grafton Galleries was based in this building in the early 20th-century. The French art dealer Paul Durand-Ruel showed the first major exhibition in Britain of Impressionist paintings here in 1905.

We will pop inside to marvel at its exquisite interior design some of which has survived for over 100 years.

Duration: 15 minutes

Stop At: Royal Academy of Arts, Burlington House Piccadilly, Piccadilly, London W1J0BD

The Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects.

Duration: 15 minutes

Stop At: Burlington Arcade, 51 Piccadilly, London W1J0QJ

The Regency-style building is known as the “Jewel of Mayfair” for good reason, with sculptures carved by Benjamin Clemens, a professor of sculpture at the Royal College of Art, adorning the Piccadilly façade. Today, the Arcade is proud home to three artistic hubs in the form of Opera Gallery, the Gagosian Shop and the Lalique Art Gallery: the first-ever exhibition space from the French crystal brand.

The Arcade also has played host to some of the most important sculptures of the area – including the permanent presence of Antony Gormley’s Cinch perched on the north façade of the arcade. The sculpture was installed in 2017 and is the Turner Prize-winning artist’s first work in solid stainless steel, representing the human as a work in progress.

Duration: 20 minutes