WHAT?  Georgian Illuminations 

WHERE? Sir John Soane’s Museum, 13 Lincoln’s Inn Field, WC2A 3BP 

WHEN? Now until 7th January 2024.  Free to visit 

WHY GO?  To soak up the atmosphere. Our current infatuation with illuminating buildings after dark is nothing new. The Georgians were early adopters and where better to travel back 18th century style and marvel at how accomplished they were then in this unique museum, home of distinguished architect and collector Soane?

Though you need to pitch up after dark to get the full effect of multimedia artist Nayan Kulkarni’s contemporary show when the museum’s facade is illuminated Georgian style, you can revel in the many surviving drawings and prints that record their fascination with spectacular light shows in the museum’s atmospheric setting. 

The Georgians staged dazzling light shows to celebrate anything and everything from Royal birthdays to social gatherings showcased in their famous pleasure gardens.  

The mega wealthy commissioned private light shows, paying huge sums, to entertain guests lavishly on a whim while regular households demonstrated their patriotism publicly by hanging inexpensive glass lamps in their windows. 

Amongst the many famous architects tasked to oversee these General Illuminations Nights was the celebrated Soane, Architect and Surveyor to the Bank of England, and it’s recorded that his taste and skill in illuminating the Bank demonstrated a ‘fitting display of patriotism and loyalty to the crown’. 

IN THE KNOW:  For more Georgian magic, join a special workshop with cult jewellers Tatty Devine who will demonstrate how to make a dazzling Georgian Illuminations inspired necklace.

The event includes a tour of the museum exhibition, details are online.