Inside the V&A East Storehouse, Where the Museum Is the Exhibit | Artnet News
Housing the vast collection of Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Storehouse gives visitors a "back stage pass" to the famed institution.
news.artnet.comHere’s the latest on V&A East Storehouse.
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Opening date and context: The V&A East Storehouse opened to the public on 31 May 2025 as part of the East Bank development in Stratford, London, offering a behind-the-scenes access experience to the museum’s collections. This marked the first of two V&A East sites, with the second site, V&A East Museum, planned to launch in spring 2026.[1][2]
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What to expect inside: The Storehouse is a working storage and exhibition space spanning about 16,000 square metres across four floors, housing more than half a million objects. Visitors can explore “Order an Object,” a service for free, seven-days-a-week access to items from the collection, plus dozens of small curated displays in a behind-the-scenes style. Highlights range from mid-century furniture to historic textiles and performance artifacts, plus fashion and design pieces from major designers, with live events and workshops as part of the experience.[2][4][1]
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Design and reception: The space was designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro and described as a new standard for access to national collections, emphasizing transparency and personalised visitor journeys. Coverage indicates that the Storehouse aims to demystify collection care, conservation, and research processes while presenting objects in accessible, hatch-like installations. Early media and cultural press framed it as a transformative, free-access cultural venue in London’s East Bank.[3][5][1][2]
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Practical details for visitors: The Storehouse operates as a free-to-enter venue, with the “Order an Object” feature enabling advance online booking for viewing specific items. Its location within Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park situates it in a newly developing cultural quarter, alongside the later-opening V&A East Museum.[4][2]
If you’d like, I can pull a conciseHighlights list for quick reference, or share visitor tips (best times to visit, accessibility, and how to use the Order an Object service). Citations after each factual point come from the sources above.