The best art and photography of 2025
from eye-boggling Bridget Riley to the Face’s riotous fashion
The Guardian. By Jonathan Jones, Charlotte Jansen, Adrian Searle and Eddy Frankel published December 22, 2025
Untitled, 1984, by Peter Hujar. Photograph: Chicago Albumen Works/Peter Hujar Archive/ARS, New York/Pace Gallery
Adrian Searle’s best art shows of the year
1. Peter Hujar: Eyes Open in the Dark
Raven Row, London
One of the great photographers of the late 20th century, and now the subject of Ira Sachs’s 2025 movie Peter Hujar’s Day starring Ben Whishaw, Peter Hujar’s relentless, beautifully shot black-and-white photographs filled Raven Row early this year. This revelatory show brought out Hujar’s curiosity and his unerring eye, his darkroom skills and his utter seriousness. Rolleiflex camera always in hand, Hujar captured human vulnerabilities and vanities, including his own, a prickly artist, shunning fame. New York wreathed in fog, light on the river, life and death: his subjects had no end. My show of the year.
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Charlotte Jansen’s best UK photography shows of the year
3. Peter Hujar: Eyes Open in the Dark
Raven Row, London
Putrid, petrifying, and vertiginously beautiful, this museum-quality exhibition threw you into the decaying, dank urban streets of downtown New York, but also lifted you to moments of dizzying euphoria and perfect grace. A sharp, feeling, and sublime account of one of the 20th century’s greatest artists. Unforgettable.
Full article in The Guardian
“Eyes Open in the Dark” will be traveling to Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn, Germany from February 27–August 23, 2026. See exhibition details.