Beyond the Gallery: How V&A East’s ‘upperground’ Residency is Redefining the Museum Experience

On a typical Thursday afternoon, the quiet hum of a museum is usually punctuated only by the soft footfalls of visitors or the hushed tones of guided tours. However, at V&A East, the atmosphere has undergone a radical, rhythmic transformation. As staff prepare for upperground, the museum’s innovative new DJ residency, the space shifts from a site of passive observation to a vibrant hub of cultural exchange. It was during one such setup that a chance encounter highlighted the true potential of this experiment: a university friend, who had entered the museum simply to browse the galleries, found herself captivated by the prospect of returning for an evening set. That serendipitous meeting served as a powerful reminder that young people across London are not only eager to engage with institutional spaces, but are actively seeking the kind of less formal, more communal connections that traditional exhibitions often struggle to facilitate.

The upperground series, which launched this past August, was conceived as a sonic dialogue with the museum’s current exhibition, The Music is Black: A British Story. By inviting a different DJ, selector, or music practitioner to take over the museum’s upper ground space every Thursday, V&A East is testing the boundaries of what a museum can be. These artists are tasked with "activating" the space, curating sets that reflect their own unique musical vernacular. In doing so, the residency poses a fundamental question: what happens when the rigid, often static nature of gallery spaces collides with the fluid, kinetic energy of club culture and live performance?

The physical architecture of the museum plays a critical role in the success of this union. The upper ground floor, defined by floor-to-ceiling windows that offer a panoramic view of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, sheds its traditional gallery aesthetic the moment it is filled with music and a dancing crowd. It becomes a space of permeability, where the barriers between the spectator and the art, and between the institution and the public, are significantly lowered. As visitors gather, they are encouraged to engage not only with the music—which serves as a living, breathing representation of Black diasporic creative production—but also with one another, fostering a sense of community that is rare in more conventional museum environments.

The level of autonomy granted to the featured artists is a cornerstone of the project’s success. Each performer is given creative control over the activation of the space, extending beyond the music to include lighting, staging, and supplementary programming. A standout example occurred on the 13th of August, when the Black, queer DJ collective Polyjammeorus brought their distinct vision to the museum. Their takeover was more than a performance; it was a holistic cultural event that included a zine-making workshop centered on the public’s relationship with Black British music. This initiative transformed the evening into an intellectual and creative forum, where a diverse set spanning Afro-tech, dancehall, amapiano, garage, and house music served as the backdrop for deeper conversations about creative expression and identity.

At its core, upperground is an inquiry into institutional accessibility. It challenges museums to reconsider how they can open their doors more effectively to younger generations, with a particular focus on welcoming the Black and queer youth of the surrounding area. By showcasing Black talent from the London music scene and offering these performances as free, non-ticketed events, V&A East has successfully drawn together a diverse array of demographics. These individuals, perhaps otherwise disconnected, are unified under the shared experience of dancing, listening to music, and engaging with like-minded peers in a safe, public environment.

For those behind the scenes, the experience has been a masterclass in the practical application of representation. Coordinating a series like upperground provides a unique vantage point on how an institution can champion untold or underacknowledged stories in a way that resonates across generations. For a young Black woman working within the V&A East team, the project has underscored the profound importance of artistic representation—not merely as a symbolic gesture, but as an active, facilitative process. It raises compelling questions about the future of the local cultural landscape: if more institutions were to adopt this collaborative, open-door model, how might the relationship between the city and its museums evolve?

As a pilot series, upperground is intentionally experimental. The roster of artists reflects a vast spectrum of musical histories, diasporas, and contemporary scenes, allowing the museum to test the public’s appetite for such programming. Crucially, it asks whether a single institutional space can accommodate such a wide range of sonic experiences while simultaneously preserving the individuality of each artist’s sound. It forces the museum to "decode" itself—to examine its own identity and interrogate exactly who it is serving when it invites "outsiders" to lead its public programming.

Ultimately, the initiative functions as a companion piece to The Music is Black exhibition. While the exhibition documents the historical breadth of Black contributions to the global music scene, upperground provides the stage for those stories to be lived and extended into the future. By allowing the music to move beyond the walls of a glass case and into the ears and bodies of the public, V&A East is creating a space where the past and the future of creative production can coexist. It is a bold, necessary step toward a more inclusive museum culture, one that recognizes that the most vital stories are not just those that are preserved, but those that continue to be written by the communities who visit. As the residency continues, the project stands as a testament to the idea that museums can be more than repositories for the past; they can be active, vibrant, and essential participants in the contemporary cultural life of the city.