Illuminated River is a major mayoral public art project to light up the central London bridges along the Thames. Next year, five more bridges will be lit, making it the longest public artwork in the world. Illuminated River artist Leo Villareal joins a long tradition of artists who have been inspired by the Thames and its bridges. Villareal’s light compositions mimic the ever-changing movement of the river, using shifting hues drawn from the London sky during sunset, through nightfall and under moonlight. In this exhibition, Villareal selects paintings of the next bridges to be illuminated, from artists whose approach to light and colour has resonance with his own.


To find out more, visit https://illuminatedriver.london

Artists featured in this Curation: Terry McKivragan (1929–2013), Henry Pether (1800–1880), Oskar Kokoschka (1886–1980), Claude Monet (1840–1926), Donald Chisholm Towner (1903–1985), Alfred Daniels (1924–2015), John Edgar Platt (1886–1967), Canaletto (1697–1768), Frank Bowling (b.1934), André Derain (1880–1954), and 6 more
20 artworks
Storyline Album Showcase
Evening Sun, Westminster
© the copyright holder. Image credit: Parliamentary Art Collection

Evening Sun, Westminster

Terry McKivragan (1929–2013)

Acrylic on canvas

H 65.6 x W 73.3 cm

Parliamentary Art Collection

Westminster from the Horse-Ferry Quay by Moonlight
Image credit: National Trust Images

Westminster from the Horse-Ferry Quay by Moonlight 1852

Henry Pether (1800–1880)

Oil on canvas

H 59.5 x W 90 cm

National Trust, Dorneywood

London, Waterloo Bridge
© Foundation Oskar Kokoschka/DACS 2024. Image credit: Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales

London, Waterloo Bridge 1926

Oskar Kokoschka (1886–1980)

Oil on canvas

H 89.2 x W 129.6 cm

Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales

Pont de Londres (Charing Cross Bridge, London)
Image credit: National Trust Images

Pont de Londres (Charing Cross Bridge, London) 1902

Claude Monet (1840–1926)

Oil on canvas

H 64 x W 90 cm

National Trust, Chartwell

The Embankment, Westminster
© the artist's estate. Image credit: Royal Academy of Arts

The Embankment, Westminster 1934

Donald Chisholm Towner (1903–1985)

Oil on canvas

H 58.5 x W 75 cm

Royal Academy of Arts

Parliament and Lambeth Palace, London
© the artist's estate. Image credit: City of London Corporation

Parliament and Lambeth Palace, London 1978

Alfred Daniels (1924–2015)

Oil on canvas

H 70 x W 100 cm

City of London Corporation

Westminster Bridge by Moonlight
Image credit: Government Art Collection

Westminster Bridge by Moonlight c.1862

Henry Pether (1800–1880)

Oil on canvas

H 60 x W 90 cm

Government Art Collection

Wartime Traffic on the River Thames: River Police at Waterloo Bridge during the Battle of Britain
Image credit: IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Wartime Traffic on the River Thames: River Police at Waterloo Bridge during the Battle of Britain 1942

John Edgar Platt (1886–1967)

Oil on panel

H 19 x W 22.8 cm

IWM (Imperial War Museums)

Westminster from near the Terrace of Somerset House
Image credit: Yale Center for British Art

Westminster from near the Terrace of Somerset House c.1750

Canaletto (1697–1768)

Oil on canvas

H 38.7 x W 71.8 cm

Yale Center for British Art

Great Thames IV
© Frank Bowling. All rights reserved, DACS 2024. Image credit: Arts Council Collection, Southbank Centre, London

Great Thames IV 1988–1989

Frank Bowling (b.1934)

Acrylic on canvas

H 181 x W 321 cm

Arts Council Collection, Southbank Centre

The Thames below Westminster
Image credit: The National Gallery, London

The Thames below Westminster about 1871

Claude Monet (1840–1926)

Oil on canvas

H 47 x W 73 cm

The National Gallery, London

Blackfriars Bridge, London
© ADAGP, Paris and DACS, London 2023. Image credit: Glasgow Life Museums

Blackfriars Bridge, London 1906

André Derain (1880–1954)

Oil on canvas

H 80.7 x W 99.5 cm

Glasgow Life Museums

Blackfriars Bridge II
© the artist. Image credit: Clare Hall, University of Cambridge

Blackfriars Bridge II 2010

Stefan Luszczak (b.1960)

Oil on canvas

H 80 x W 100 cm

Clare Hall, University of Cambridge

The Houses of Parliament from the River
Image credit: Victoria and Albert Museum, London

The Houses of Parliament from the River 1864

James Francis Danby (1816–1875)

Oil on canvas

H 44.4 x W 74.9 cm

Paintings Collection

Lambeth Bridge, London
© the artist's estate. Image credit: Leeds Museums and Galleries

Lambeth Bridge, London 1959

Bruno Bobak (1923–2012)

Oil on canvas

H 76.2 x W 101.6 cm

Leeds Museums and Galleries

View of Westminster Bridge and the Houses of Parliament with a Hay Barge
Image credit: Parliamentary Art Collection

View of Westminster Bridge and the Houses of Parliament with a Hay Barge 1859

James Francis Danby (1816–1875)

Oil on canvas

H 81 x W 123 cm

Parliamentary Art Collection

Charing Cross Bridge
Image credit: Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales

Charing Cross Bridge 1902

Claude Monet (1840–1926)

Oil on canvas

H 65.4 x W 81.3 cm

Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales

Dusk on the Thames at Westminster
© the copyright holder. Image credit: National Trust Images

Dusk on the Thames at Westminster 1953/1954

Dimitrie Berea (1908–1975)

Oil on panel

H 154 x W 128 cm

National Trust, Chartwell

The Thames above Waterloo Bridge
Image credit: Tate

The Thames above Waterloo Bridge c.1830–5

Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851)

Oil on canvas

H 90.5 x W 121 cm

Tate

Nocturne: Grey and Gold, Westminster Bridge
Image credit: Glasgow Life Museums

Nocturne: Grey and Gold, Westminster Bridge c.1871–1872

James Abbott McNeill Whistler (1834–1903)

Oil on canvas

H 71 x W 86.4 cm

Glasgow Life Museums

Explore artists in this Curation

View all 16
  • Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
    Alfred Daniels (1924–2015)
  • The Bucintoro Returning to the Molo on Ascension Day after the Ceremony of Wedding the Adriatic, Venice, Italy
    Canaletto (1697–1768)
  • London, Waterloo Bridge
    Oskar Kokoschka (1886–1980)
  • Heavy Sky over Westminster
    Terry McKivragan (1929–2013)
  • Great Thames IV
    Frank Bowling (b.1934)
  • Twickenham, Middlesex, by Moonlight
    Henry Pether (1800–1880)
  • The Fighting Temeraire tugged to her Last Berth to be broken up, 1838
    Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775–1851)
  • Blackfriars Bridge II
    Stefan Luszczak (b.1960)
  • The Mall, 2 June 1953
    Dimitrie Berea (1908–1975)
  • The Houses of Parliament from the River
    James Francis Danby (1816–1875)
  • View all 16
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