London Photo Gallery - V&A East Museum

Complementing the Storehouse that opened the previous year, the V&A East in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park opened in April 2026. I started on the top floor to check out the beautiful views of the park and skyline from the terrace. This floor also has an exhibition with photos of Stratford before regeneration arrived for the Olympics. Entitled "Dispersal", it celebrates the different trades and businesses from the Lea Valley impacted by the 2012 games. This part of London was quite industrial and working class. The permanent gallery, "Why We Make", explores different forms of creativity across 2 floors. The items are arranged by theme, and not period, and cover more modern topics such as social justice and environmentalism. This poster for Greenpeace was designed in 2012 to highlight the dangers that Arctic regions face from oil drilling. Made by the Female Society for Birmingham, the first anti-slavery group for women in the country, bags like this in the early 19th century showed solidarity against slavery. Inside the bags are pamphlets, which include first-hand accounts from the enslaved. During Lebanon's protests in 2019, graphic designer Farah Fayyad worked with friends to set up a screen-printing press to produce clothes and accessories with protest images. When The Zimbabwean Newspaper was shut down for criticizing the government, it used banknotes as flyers to highlight the country's economic disaster. This is a model of a bamboo residence in Bali from 2011. The architects work with local artisans to harvest bamboo for construction, with the materials being sustainable. East London designer Gitta Gschwendtner created this bench in the style of Windsor chairs with a mix of local woods. Iran-based artist Abbas Akbari created this modern tile that looks like a historic item. Traditional decorative patterns are replaced with guns, bulldozers, and cars. Chinese designer Xinyu Weng wanted to turn discarded rental bikes into furniture. How do you make a pair of sustainable trainers? How about technology to reduce waste or farming initiatives to regenerate natural landscapes? Vegea developed this material from the stalks, seeds, and skins of grapes that are waste from wine production. It's an alternative to leather without the use of animals, with the dress here produced for the company launch in 2017. This screen from the early 17th century shows the Portuguese's arrival in Nagasaki. It was probably painted for a wealthy Japanese merchant. East London-based artist Jessie Brennan drew about Robin Hood Gardens' demolition. Next part : click here