National Gallery

The National Gallery is a big art museum. It sits in a place called Trafalgar Square. It is in London. The museum has over 2,300 paintings.

Some of these paintings are very old. The government bought the first 38 paintings in 1824.

Many people gave their own art to the museum. This helps the collection grow. You can see the main art for free. It is a wonderful place to learn.

The National Gallery is a famous art museum in London. It sits in a place called Trafalgar Square. The museum has more than 2,300 paintings. These works date from the mid-13th century to the year 1900.

The gallery started in 1824. The British government bought 38 paintings to begin the collection.

One painting, called "The Raising of Lazarus," was the very first to join. Since then, many people have given their art as gifts. These gifts make up two-thirds of the whole collection.

People can see the main art for free. The museum's building has changed over time. A man named William Wilkins designed the current site. Construction began in 1832, and it opened in 1838. The building has grown many times. One new part is the Sainsbury Wing. It was built in 1991. The gallery helps people enjoy great art. It is a special place for everyone to visit.

The National Gallery is a famous art museum in London, England. It sits in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster. The museum holds a huge collection of over 2,300 paintings. These artworks date from the mid-13th century all the way to 1900.

The gallery is a charity that holds these works for the British public. Because of this, people can enter to see the main collection for free. It is a place where people can find joy and learning through art.

Building a collection like this takes many different steps. The gallery did not start with a royal collection like many others in Europe. Instead, it began when the British government bought 38 paintings in 1824.

These paintings came from the heirs of a man named John Julius Angerstein. One painting, "The Raising of Lazarus," was the very first to join. It is officially known as "NG1" in the gallery records. Since those early days, private donations have helped the collection grow. In fact, donations now make up two-thirds of everything in the museum.

The history of the gallery is full of many interesting stories. In the late 1700s, many European countries were making national galleries from royal art. Great Britain did not do this at first. For example, the British Royal Collection stayed with the sovereign. Some people even tried to suggest buying other famous collections, like the one from Sir Robert Walpole. However, those plans did not work out at the time. Eventually, the government decided to buy the Angerstein collection for £57,000. This purchase finally gave the nation its own public gallery.

The museum has lived in several different buildings over the years. It first opened in 1824 at 100 Pall Mall.

That building was often too small and too hot for visitors. Later, a man named William Wilkins designed the current building. Construction on this site began in 1832, and it opened in 1838. The building has grown many times since then through small additions. One major part is the Sainsbury Wing, built in 1991 by Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown. This wing is a famous example of Postmodernist architecture.

The paintings in the gallery show us how art has changed. The collection is described as encyclopaedic in its scope. This means it covers many important steps in Western painting. You can see works from famous artists like Giotto and Cézanne.

Early directors like Sir Charles Lock Eastlake helped find many new pieces. He traveled to Italy to find beautiful paintings for the public. Today, the gallery continues to be a very important place for art lovers. It connects the history of the past to people living today.

The National Gallery is a major art museum located in Trafalgar Square. It sits within the City of Westminster in Central London, England. The institution functions as an exempt charity and a non-departmental public body. It is overseen by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The gallery holds its collection in trust for the British public. Because of this status, entry to the main collection is free of charge. The museum houses more than 2,300 paintings. These works date from the mid-13th century until 1900.

Unlike many other national galleries in continental Europe, this museum had a unique beginning. Many European galleries, such as the Louvre in France, were formed by nationalising royal or princely collections. In Great Britain, the Royal Collection remained in the possession of the sovereign. The National Gallery was instead founded through a specific government purchase. In 1824, the British government bought 38 paintings from the heirs of John Julius Angerstein.

One painting, "The Raising of Lazarus," became the first official acquisition. It is recorded in the gallery as "NG1." This initial purchase provided the foundation for what would become an encyclopaedic collection.

Building the collection required many years of effort and various methods of acquisition. After the initial 1824 purchase, the gallery grew through private donations and strategic buying. Today, private donations account for two-thirds of the entire collection. Early directors played a vital role in shaping these holdings. Sir Charles Lock Eastlake was particularly influential during his time as director. He conducted annual tours across the European continent and through Italy. He sought out specific works to expand the museum's scope. In total, Eastlake purchased 148 paintings abroad and 46 within Britain.

The history of the gallery's formation includes several missed opportunities. In 1777, the government considered buying the collection of Sir Robert Walpole. This collection was eventually purchased by Catherine the Great and moved to the State Hermitage Museum. Later, plans to acquire 150 paintings from the Orléans collection also failed. Even the offer of a ready-made collection by Noël Desenfans and Sir Francis Bourgeois was declined. Despite these setbacks, artists like James Barry and Flaxman argued for a national gallery. They believed a British school of painting needed access to the European canon. Eventually, the Angerstein collection was purchased for £57,000 in 1824.

The museum has occupied three different sites throughout its history. The first site was a townhouse at 100 Pall Mall.

This location was often criticized for being too small and too hot. It also suffered from subsidence, which forced a brief move to 105 Pall Mall. The current building was designed by architect William Wilkins. Construction on this third site began in 1832. It officially opened to the public in 1838. While the façade facing Trafalgar Square remains largely unchanged, the building has expanded many times. One notable addition is the Sainsbury Wing, completed in 1991 by Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown. This wing is a significant example of Postmodernist architecture.

The scope of the collection is described as encyclopaedic. This means it represents most major developments in Western painting. The museum features works ranging from the era of Giotto to the era of Cézanne. This breadth allows visitors to see how artistic styles evolved over centuries. The collection includes masters of the High Renaissance and the Northern Renaissance. Some early acquisitions focused on these High Renaissance masters. However, directors like Eastlake expanded this to include "primitives," or early Italian Renaissance masters. This shift helped the gallery represent a much wider history of human creativity.

Maintaining such a vast collection involves complex scientific and historical work. One major area of focus is conservation, which is the preservation of artworks. In 1844, the gallery began its first major cleaning operations. These efforts were sometimes controversial among critics of the time. Beyond cleaning, the gallery must manage the physical space and the movement of art. During the Second World War, paintings had to be moved for safety. Today, the National Gallery remains a central part of the global art community. It connects the historical legacy of European painting with the modern public.