'There's Nothing to Hide': Tim Reeve on the V&A East ...
As the museum opens its vast new space in east London, the deputy director discusses how the institution is evolving to become more accessible
www.frieze.comDirect answer: V&A East has opened in east London in 2026, with its inaugural program and stores hailed as a major expansion of the V&A into the East Bank area.
Context and highlights:
- The V&A East comprises two sites: V&A East Museum and V&A East Storehouse, located in the East Bank, Stratford. The Storehouse opened in 2025 as a vast storage-and-public-access space, while the Museum opened in April 2026 with a focus on contemporary as well as historical design narratives.[1][4][5]
- The opening program emphasizes accessibility and local engagement, including a rotating commissions program and a focus on public access to the broader V&A archive and collections. Leading contemporary artists are involved in installations across both sites.[3][5]
- The inaugural exhibition at V&A East Museum is The Music Is Black: A British Story, highlighting Black British music from 1900 to the present, underscoring the institution’s commitment to diverse, inclusive narratives. Tickets and early-access information were released ahead of the opening.[4]
Illustration (contextual snapshot):
- V&A East Storehouse acts as a 4-story, large-scale storage-and-access facility housing hundreds of thousands of objects and archives, designed to be freely navigable by visitors.[1]
If you’d like, I can pull a concise timeline of key openings and exhibitions for V&A East, or summarize current ticketing and access details for visitors from your location in Warsaw.[4][1]