After our visit to the College of Arms and Gordon's wine bar, we had a bit of time before checking out of our hotel and moving over to Jenny and T's for a couple of days. Rick wanted to return to the guitar store so we split up. As I was walking down Charing Cross I noticed the National Portrait Gallery, which I had been interested in visiting. It seemed like a good time to do it, or at least do what I could.
The National Portrait Gallery is just one of many fine art museums in London. This one has the specific focus of portraiture in a variety of media, though most is photography or painting/visual art.
The galleries (there are four floors; I made it through three) have, for the most part, sections that focus on a theme. For example, there are famous paintings of members of the royal family, old . . .
. . . and more recent.
Another section focuses on the sciences and I enjoyed this portrait of Jane Goodall.
Writers are throughout, including two of my favorites, Agatha Christie, pictured here with her daughter, and Beatrix Potter.
This was a particularly interesting pair of the Brontes, both done by the three literary sisters' brother, Patrick Bramwell Bronte. The drawing of Emily is the only surviving bit of a family portrait. It was found at the same time as the portrait next to it, and below. The two pieces were discovered by the second wife of Charlotte Bronte's widower in 1914, stashed into a cupboard in an Irish farmhouse. If you look carefully at the pillar, you will see a ghost image of a male, presumed to be Bramwell, the artist, who was 17 at the time and just learning to be a painter. The paintings were not restored by the gallery.
Women of the suffrage movement are featured, including Emmeline and Christobel Pankhurst. . .
. . . along with those who contributed to efforts in various wars, such as actress Wendy Hiller, who served as a warden and Vera Brittain, wrote "Testament of Youth," recounting her experiences in World War I, where she served as a nurse in England, Malta and France.
There are many more but I want to leave you with a few of this panel-mural in the lobby by Jann Haworth and Liberty Blake titled "Work in Progress." In it you will find many familiar faces. I didn't see all their portraits but it wouldn't surprise me to find them all in the galleries upstairs.
In the two below you'll find Alice Liddel, for whom "Alice in Wonderland" was written, Agatha Christie (reading the newspaper) and ballerina Anna Pavlova, among others.
All in all, a wonderful visit. I need to back and finish the top floor!
Travel Tips:
- The National Portrait Gallery is located adjacent to the National Gallery and easily accessible by tube. I had no line going later in the afternoon -- I probably got there around 2:30 or 3 p.m. On the day I visited they closed at five. If I was planning a visit, I'd allow three hours.
- There is no charge to enter the gallery, although there may be one for special exhibitions. Donations, however, are gratefully accepted.
- I was there about an hour, maybe 90 minutes and didn't quite finish but got through most of it. I'd allow two hours to be on the safe side; a little longer wouldn't hurt.
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53 comments:
...thanks for taking me along, it's unlikely that I'd be there in person.
What a beautiful gallery. You shared so many different portraits. All so captivating and impressive. You got a lot in for a short amount of time.
The portrait of Beatrix Potter caught my eye. Fascinating! All are incredible. Thank you for sharing.
That was a flying visit. I'm glad you fitted it in. It features in a lot of British novels -- people meeting there, making it a safe first date for mature folk, etc. It has a character of its own.
It´s so refreshing to learn you split up sometimes, too! When Ingo and I do, all assume we fight - no!!!! (not always ;-)...)
Themed is a great idea, too. And wonderful art!
I like more modern view of King Charles and Queen Camilla. It's much less stuffy than the old views, BUT, saying that, the portraits are all lovely. I haven't been here either, not something the hubby would be up to but that doesn't mean I won't get there. Thanks for sharing Jeanie. You included a nice little selection and I hope someday I can get there now. hugs-Erika
Beautiful exhibit, the paintings and the mural are lovely.
Jane Goodall and Agatha Christie are two of my favorites.
Take care, have a great day!
Hello Jeanie :)
You saw quite a lot of paintings in the short time you were there, and I enjoyed seeing them too. In my 50s I did pastel portraiture, and sold them in small galleries. The
National Portrait Gallery was my first stop when my husband and I visited London. I have always been interested in faces with caracter, and we spent at least a couple of hours looking round. It was a wonderful experience, as I'm sure it was for you too. Thank you for the happy memories your visit created for me.
All the best
Sonjia.
Have you seen Portrait Artist of the Year on Prime? I think one winner may have been hung in that gallery. Not sure if it was that gallery however. You might enjoy the series. We have seen 1 of 3 series.
Ohhh you are so fortunate to visit the gallery. It would be a dream for me. Thank you for sharing it and thank you for commenting on lupus awareness.
What a wonderful place to explore and admire. Thanks for sharing.
I do love that portraits are a bit of a social commentary at times also. Thanks for taking us.
The hidden details, like the ghostly image of Bramwell, make the rediscovered Brontë portraits even more special, adding a deeper connection to the family’s history.
Yay! That's where my daughter's painting resided for a brief period of time.
It’s great that you took advantage of the time between other things to visit. Thanks for sharing with the rest of us.
There’s never enough time to see everything in London! I am impressed with the vast number of things you did.
I would have loved visiting this place. Thanks for sharing these photos. Janice
Jeanie,
Another amazing post...Thanks so much for sharing!! And thanks for your visits!! They are truly appreciated...
Hugs,
Deb
Debbie-Dabble Blog
I would love to go there. I wonder if we have anything similar in the US.
I am a huge admirer of Jane Goodall. I am not a huge admirer of this portrait of her!
I too thank you:) Beatrix reminds me of Vera:).
Thanks Jeanie for taking us along on your at gallery tour. You and Rick managed to see a lot while there.
When I was in sixth grade, I was interested in learning ballet and became a fan of Anna Pavlova, the Russian ballerina. So, I love that painting of her.
Many marvelous portraits shown here Jeanie. You documented them beautifully. I enjoyed each and every one, but my favorite will always be that of Jane Goodall. I have been a big fan of hers my whole life.
This is one of those places I would have passed by, but you found some real treasures there, like the photos of the Brontes. On the other hand, this beats the recent photo spread in The New Yorker of our 'famous' people -- by a lot!
oh I do love a good museum! we visited the Norman Rockwell museum mid-winter and it truly was a delightful excursion ...
Love the Jane Goodall portrait..Many lovely ones for sure..Thanks for sharing..
beautiful art, i'm happy you were able to see it!! Anna Pavlova, what a beauty, i like the way the 2 of them were done!!
You are both so great about tracking down/maintaining family history. What a gift to your relatives! The wine bar looked cool - I think you had another dinner at this trip in a cave-like place if I am remembering correctly!
So many interesting portraits and they even had some busts it looked like, but my favorite was the one of Jane Goodall. They somehow captured the loving essence of her very soul! :)
Lovely photos and paintings and I love ❤️ the green 💚 wall.
Such a lovely gallery to visit.
I enjoyed the paintings you shared with us here ... thank you.
All the best Jan
Captivating! I visited the Bronte home in 2019. It's well worth a visit! There were several portraits there of the family too.
I've never been to this museum, Jeanie. I've heard such raves about it (including yours), but there never seems to be enough time. Putting it on the aspirational list for now. (Loved the portrait of Jane Goodall--it felt like seeing an old friend!)
You made a good decision to visit this museum. Thanks for sharing, and I am happy I could join you by way of your blog!
Doesn't it look like in some of these paintings that the folks could just step right off the canvas? Such talent.
This is yet another “reason” why we would like to return to London one day, Jeanie. Our too short visit a couple of years ago left no time for museums of galleries. Certainly the National Gallery would be on my list.
Beautiful post
Lovely exhibit
I am so happy you shared this with FFO. Thank you and have a nice weekend.
The National Portrait Gallery is one of my favorite museums in London. I've visited several times, but I still haven't seen everything - I tend to linger too long in front of a picture before I move on. One portrait I always returned to is that of Virginia Woolf. I hope you can visit again.
I been watch a show called Artist of the year. The portrait winner will paint a well known person. It will be hung in the National Gallery. In 2016 I think was Tom Jones.
The exhibit looks stunning—those portraits and the mural are so captivating. The Brontë portrait story is fascinating too—hard to believe something like that was tucked away in a cupboard.
I see you spotted some of my favourites too! - Jenny.
So many interesting photos and paintings at the art museum. The one of Jane Goodall is so pretty. The painting with the familiar faces is neat. That's great that you made it to three of the four floors. What a massive place this is. I've always been interested in self portraits. They linger on long after we are gone. When looking closely, you can see a lot about the person. This museum sounds like your cup of tea, Jeanie.
~Sheri
Interesting
Oops -- I thought I'd posted already! I think this would be my favorite museum. I love portraits, such an interesting expression of the time and the person. And I love the Jane Goodall portrait. I would have spent hours and hours here.
I love portraits! We went to this gallery many moons ago, and really enjoyed it. I also love our National Portrait Gallery here in Australia. There's just something about seeing someone's face captured in a photo or on a canvas ...
cheers
sherry
That looks like such a lovely art gallery!
Oh how wonderful!! Wyatt and I and Billy would have such a great time there! Thank you for sharing this glimpse into it!
You made great use of your 90 minutes and saw so much! I am impressed by the painting skills of the 17yo brother of the Brontes! Wow! That family had talent in spades!!
What a fascinating gallery. I wouldn't have thought to visit here, but now am intrigued. What a variety of art and people.
Thanks for sharing your visit to the National Portrait Gallery, Jeanie. I spent many hours there. I got in my head in high school that I wanted to see Richard III's portrait there, and decades later that was the first portrait I hunted down. London's NPG is a fascinating place!
The portrait of Beatrix Potter is charming!
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