Imagine art that doesn’t just invite your gaze, but also your ears. If you crave a truly immersive, multi-sensory journey where paintings resonate with sound, and you appreciate it loud, then Peter Doig’s ‘House of Music’ exhibition is an absolute must-see.
Until February 8th, London’s Serpentine Galleries present a groundbreaking exhibition delving into the profound impact of music on the celebrated Scottish painter, Peter Doig. For the first time, visitors can experience his art accompanied by a continuous soundtrack curated directly from his personal vinyl collection of 300 albums. Doig, who famously paints to music (with country currently being a favorite), has even arranged for special guest artists and musicians to share their own influential tracks every Sunday.
The interwoven relationship between music and the visual arts boasts a long and rich history, marked by numerous iconic 20th-century pairings. In 1911, the Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky, who often named his vibrant, abstract works as if they were musical compositions, urged: “Lend your ears to music, open your eyes to painting, and … stop thinking!”
Inspired by the buzzing postwar jazz scene in New York, Piet Mondrian created his exhilarating visual symphony, ‘Broadway Boogie-Woogie’ (1942-43). Similarly, Jackson Pollock, in the midst of his dynamic paint-splattering sessions, found his rhythm listening to Duke Ellington. Faith Ringgold also drew deep inspiration from Ellington and other Harlem legends. ‘Music is a life force,’ she declared in a 2006 interview. ‘I try to interpret the music in my work. You can’t see the music, but you can feel it.’
The same profound connection can be felt in the vivid, luminous canvases displayed throughout this four-room exhibition, which Doig has aptly titled after the lyrics from ‘Dat Soca Boat,’ a 2011 track by the Trinidadian calypsonian musician Winston Bailey, better known as Mighty Shadow.
In his captivating painting ‘Shadow’ (2019), Doig features the musician himself, gazing out at a hazy sea with a distant lighthouse and boat. Shadow is depicted in his iconic skeleton costume, a yellow guitar slung over his shoulder, radiating an almost palpable warmth — as if imbued with the vibrant energy of forthcoming music, reminiscent of Picasso’s ‘Three Musicians’.
Doig has carefully chosen 22 works, created between 2002 and 2025, each with connections to music that range from subtle to striking. Visitors will encounter stacks of speakers resembling geometric abstractions; girls roller-skating in hazy, sfumato atmospheres blurred with motion; and intimate portraits of musicians like Shadow, and the Trinidadian poet and artist Emheyo Bahabba (also known as Embah), with whom Doig shared a studio for fourteen years.
Beyond the canvases, sound itself becomes a sculptural element within the exhibition. Vintage 1950s wooden Klangfilm Euronor speakers, renowned for their ‘high fidelity,’ are strategically placed in two distinct areas. Here, comfortable lounge chairs invite visitors to relax and absorb the very melodies Doig listens to while painting. These colossal speakers, originally hidden behind cinema screens, now stand proudly, almost like illuminated, enormous ears, serving as a powerful reminder: listening, much like looking, is a reciprocal act—you truly get what you invest.
Perhaps the most ‘phantastic’ — in the wonderfully archaic sense of being imaginary, marvelous, and capable of conjuring vivid impressions — is the breathtaking installation in the central gallery. Here, an immense speaker, a technological marvel from Western Electric/Bell Labs dating back to the 1920s and ’30s, dominates the space. This early cinematic ‘loud speaking telephone,’ its metal form curving like an ear canal, hangs dramatically from a scaffold. It’s in this resonant chamber that guest artists and musicians will periodically unveil the sonic inspirations behind their own creative endeavors (I’ve already marked my calendar for sessions with Cat Power and Lizzi Bougatsos, and the lineup boasts other luminaries like Ed Ruscha, Brian Eno, and Arthur Jafa).
Keep an eye out for Laurence Passera, the brilliant sound-system expert who rescued this historical speaker from a Welsh cinema. He meticulously oversees its amplification, a modern-day Wizard of Oz coaxing rich, warm tones far surpassing the crisp, yet often sterile, sounds of our digital era. Legend has it, this very speaker once introduced a young Tom Jones to the iconic voice of Elvis Presley.
Among Doig’s featured works, the expansive, vibrant canvas ‘Music of the Future’ (2002-2007) perfectly captures the unexpected breadth of possibility born from combining sound and vision. This particular piece draws its inspiration from a memorable Trinidadian evening, where Doig encountered a steel band rehearsing for Carnival. In the fading light, the musicians were almost invisible, yet their music pulsed with such force that it seemed to materialize, becoming an almost tangible visual entity.
Within this dreamlike painting, a swirling symphony of greens and blues, faint figures emerge along a tranquil, watery shoreline. The ambient music within the gallery gently beckons us to pause, to immerse ourselves deeper, and to truly feel the painting’s rhythm.
A visit to ‘The House of Music’ promises an unpredictable sonic landscape. You might find yourself enveloped by the soulful tones of Aretha Franklin’s ‘Spirit in the Dark,’ the enchanting narrative of Bobbie Gentry’s ‘Penduli Pendulum,’ the rhythmic beats of Shadow’s ‘Little Boy Blue,’ or perhaps a completely new, captivating discovery.
Regardless of what fills the air, this unique fusion will transform your perception, enriching both what and how you see. Here, the music is not just heard; it’s profoundly felt, and perhaps, even vividly seen.
Peter Doig: House of Music
Through Feb. 8 at Serpentine Gallery in London.