Warburg Institute To Reopen Next Month After £14.5m Transformation

After eight years of planning and construction, the Warburg Institute in London's Bloomsbury will reopen on October 2 following a £14.5 million transformation with newly renovated spaces including a new reading room.

Designed by architects Haworth Tompkins, highlights include the Wohl Reading Room which will be used for the study of the institute's special collections, including rare books and manuscripts.

The inaugural Display will be Memory & Migration: The Warburg Institute 1926–2024, running through December 20, focusing on its move from Hamburg to London and featuring founder Aby Warburg’s diaries, original illustrations from Frances Yates’ The Art of Memory, and a diagram from Einstein to Warburg. The new Kythera Gallery will house Edmund de Waal’s Library of Exile installation that explores the themes of books, migration, and memory.

Future exhibitions include Tarot: Origins & Afterlives (January 31 – 30 April 30, 2025) tracing the history of tarot cards from the 15th century onwards, and Art & The Book (May – July 2025), focusing on the relationship between art and publishing, with a programme of book fairs, talks, and workshops to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Sir Ernst Gombrich’s The Story of Art.

"The Warburg Renaissance has given us the chance to reimagine how we share the institute’s rich history and collections with the public," said Bill Sherman, Director Warburg Institute. "We look forward to welcoming new audiences into these transformed spaces and engaging with the cultural conversations of today."