In my experience, things that are worth waiting 3 years for a few and far between – but I can say with absolute certainty and without so much of a shadow of doubt that The National Portrait Gallery (“NPG”) is one of them. There are many great institutions here in the UK that I love to visit, but the NPG is by far my favourite. I’ve visited a lot over the years, but every time has always felt like the first time. The NPG is the home to the world’s greatest collection of portraits spanning six centuries, not to mention what I would consider to be the greatest portrait painting of all time. Anyway, in the time since my beloved NPG closed its doors, it has been having the most extensive transformation of its building since…1896 apparently! This transformational project, which seems to almost downplay the scale of the work involved, comprised a completion redisplay of the entire Collection, a significant refurbishment to the building, the creation of new public spaces for visitors to enjoy, a more welcoming visitor entrance and public forecourt, AND (!) a new learning centre.
Fun facts:-
- The NPG has chronologically hung its paintings to take visitors of a journey through history – from the middle ages to present time, telling the story of the UK through portraits.
- The Blavatnik wing (made up of 9 rooms) explores society and culture in the 19th/early 20th century.
- The complete transformation increased public space by around one fifth! This means office spaces were transformed into places to hang the Gallery’s contemporary collection – the newly named Weston Wing – showcasing works from Gursky, Hockney, McQueen, Meshat & etc etc
- The ground floor has a ‘history makers’ section (which is awesome)
- Many historical feature have been restored – and previously hidden gems such as a Victorian terrazo floor are now on display.
- There are 1,100 portraits on display now – an increase of over a third since the closure
The key aim of the project was to present an inclusive, diverse and dynamic picture of the people who contributed to the rich history of the UK. There is also a new focus on photography which was interesting to see – I’m looking forward to visiting the Paul McCartney exhibition in a few weeks’ time.
Find out what’s on by visiting here – but if you are in London please visit the NPG, it’s really, really wonderful. If you don’t have long, they run regular (I think twice daily) highlight tours which last 45 minutes and they do talks on a chosen Portrait within the collection every day. It’s all awesome.
Supporters of the refurbishment project
The NPG refurbishment was made possible by major grants from the Blavatnik Family Foundation, The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Garfield Western Foundation and the Ross Foundation.