What actually happens at an opening night, and how to get in
By Njeri Wachira · 4 September 2026 · 1 min read
Art exhibition openings aren't as intimidating as they look from outside. What to expect, what to wear, and how tickets and QR entry actually work.
Opening night looks intimidating from the outside — a gallery full of people who seem to already know each other, standing near art they seem to already understand. It's less exclusive than it looks, and the mechanics of actually getting in are the easy part.
What actually happens
An opening is the first public viewing of a show, usually two to three hours, usually with the artist actually in the room — which is the real reason to go. You look at the work, you can ask the artist a direct question about a piece if you want to, and mostly people just stand around talking. There's no test at the door.
Getting in is a ticket, not an invitation
Openings tied to a show on ArtCollect hand off to TikoYetu for tickets — pick the event, pay by M-Pesa or card, and your ticket lands as a QR code the moment payment clears, in your inbox and in your ticket wallet on this site. At the door, someone scans the code. That's the entire process; there's no guest list to be on.
What to actually wear and do
Whatever you'd wear to a nice coffee shop is over-thought enough. Arrive within the first hour if you want to actually talk to the artist before they're pulled into ten other conversations. You're allowed to just look, say nothing, and leave — nobody is grading your commentary.
If you can't make it in person
Openings get folded into the site's timeline alongside every other event and art auction, so you can see what's coming and plan around it, and a piece from the show is usually still viewable and purchasable on the artist's profile page afterward even if you miss opening night itself.
