The National Gallery

This weekend is your last chance to see our free five-star exhibition 'Millet: Life on the Land' 📣 The sower, the woodcutter, a shepherd girl. These are the subjects that made French artist Jean-Francois Millet famous. His realistic, unsentimental approach to painting rural French life was entirely new, and he went on to create some of the most timeless paintings of the 19th century. Admired and copied by Vincent van Gogh, he inspired Impressionists and Post-Impressionist artists including Edgas Degas and Camille Pissarro. Discover the beauty and quiet power of Millet’s work and learn how he influenced generations of artists for decades to come: https://bit.ly/4eN0rrj In Room 1 until 19 October 2025. Seen the exhibition already? Let us know what you thought in the comments below! #ArtHistory #Exhibition #NationalGallery #Millet

How did the Neo-Impressionists shape modern art? 💥 In 1886, Georges Seurat caused a major scandal when he unveiled a radical new style of painting. Known as pointillism, this technique involved painting in ‘dots’ of pure complementary colours. Join us as we learn more about the daring artists behind the movement. Connect the dots as you experience the world's most significant collection of Neo-Impressionist art in our exhibition, 'Radical Harmony: Helene Kröller-Müller's Neo-Impressionists'. Watch the full film and book your tickets: https://bit.ly/3Ivtxkm #ArtHistory #RadicalHarmony #NationalGallery

A Carracci masterpiece that was hiding in plain sight 👀 In Carracci’s ‘Holy Family with the Infant Saint John the Baptist’, the Virgin Mary balances the squirming Christ Child on her lap, her wide-eyed gaze drawing us into the picture. Saint Joseph and the infant Saint John the Baptist sit either side of the Virgin Mary, gazing at the Christ Child in awe. The painting achieved great fame in the 17th century and was particularly praised by the art theorist and biographer Bellori in 1672. It is one of the first paintings to apply an imposing Baroque composition to an intimately scaled picture of the Madonna. However, this magnificent work was only discovered and attributed to Carracci in 2003 by our former curator Letizia Treves, who was working at Sotheby’s at the time. An export stop was placed on the painting after its sale at auction, allowing the Gallery time to gather the necessary funds to save the painting for the nation. Thanks to the Gallery’s supporters, some of whom had left gifts in their wills, the Gallery was able to secure the painting for the national collection. Learn more about the painting and legacy giving: https://bit.ly/4fHnC7m #ArtHistory #LegacyGiving #NationalGallery

Admired and copied by Van Gogh, Millet inspired Impressionists and Post-Impressionist artists such as Degas and Pissarro... 🎨 Experience the beauty and quiet power of Jean-Francois Millet’s work in our free exhibition, ‘Millet: Life on the Land’. An artist who created some of the most timeless paintings of the 19th century, Millet was a pioneer of Realism who's unsentimental approach to working rural life developed an entirely new approach to painting. Take a closer look at some of his best-loved paintings and drawings in Room 1 until 19 October 2025: https://bit.ly/4eN0rrj #ArtHistory #Exhibition #NationalGallery #Millet

⭐ Our first-ever exhibition dedicated to the Neo-Impressionists ⭐ In our latest blockbuster exhibition, 'Radical Harmony Helene Kröller-Müller's Neo-Impressionists', see paintings by artists including Seurat, Van Gogh, Signac and Pissarro in the world's most significant collection of Neo-Impressionist art. Neo-Impressionists painted in small dots of pure colour. Viewed from a distance, the colours blend to create nuanced tones and an illusion of light. Now known as pointillism, this technique simplified form and played with colour in an entirely new way, verging on the edge of abstraction. See these radical visions of pure colour for yourself and book your tickets here: https://bit.ly/4magp22 #ArtHistory #Exhibition #NationalGallery

Think of the colour purple and what springs to mind? Royalty? Power? Luxury? 💜 The colour purple has been used in the form of dye for millennia, but its origins are less glamorous than its use would suggest. Unlike pigments and dyes which have their origins in gemstones such as lapis lazuli, azurite and malachite, the purple dye known as Tyrian purple originates from mucus produced by sea snails in the Murex family. Despite its humble origins, the dye was said to be worth three times its weight in gold in Roman times. It was also incredibly rare, and an astonishing amount of mucus was required to make a tiny amount of dye. The colour was so revered that it was strictly reserved for emperors, kings and wealthy patrons. Learn more about the use of purple in our collection, and to listen to episode 7 of our podcast, 'Stories in Colour', where we're joined by colour specialist Victoria Finlay: https://bit.ly/4mU9YQS #ArtHistory #Colour #NationalGallery

Fall in love with Renoir and his Impressionist paintings... 🩷 Discover Renoir’s gift for showing love, friendship, and everyday emotion in our 2026 exhibition 'Renoir and Love'. See couples waltzing in the summer air and lovers stealing a glance, families sharing a quiet moment and friends raising a glass, all through the eyes of an artist unmatched in capturing the complexities of how people connect. Explore the sun-dappled gardens and swirling dance halls of Paris through 40 paintings, brought together from collections across the world, as well as his iconic painting 'Bal au Moulin de la Galette', on display in the UK for the first time. Opening in October 2026, find out more here: https://bit.ly/4nw1JLT This exhibition is organised by the Musée d’Orsay, the National Gallery and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. #ArtHistory #Exhibition #NationalGallery #Renoir

⭐ Step into the world of George Stubbs in our upcoming exhibition⭐ George Stubbs’s pictures of horses are still some of the most accurate ever painted, all while capturing their unique characters. In our upcoming exhibition, 'Stubbs: Portrait of a Horse', you’ll meet one of these horses, Scrub. Painted by Stubbs around 1762, we see Scrub rearing in a landscape backdrop — notably without a rider. Painted around the same time as Stubbs's famous 'Whistlejacket', they would be the first life-size portraits to depict horses without a rider in British history. The paintings changed the spirit of equine art forever. Join us in March 2026 to get a closer look at Stubbs’s groundbreaking work: https://bit.ly/475Xot3 George Stubbs, 'Scrub, a bay horse belonging to the Marquess of Rockingham', around 1762 © Private Collection. Photo: The National Gallery, London #ArtHistory #Exhibition #NationalGallery

The National Gallery Imaginarium has been nominated for The Lovie Awards and we need your votes to help us win! Cast your vote here: https://bit.ly/46T4wYN The National Gallery Imaginarium is an innovative virtual space where you can interact with our paintings, wherever you are. Combining soundscapes, guided interaction, poetry and animations, let us take you on a journey to explore your own relationship with art, whether you know just a little or a lot. Launch the experience here: https://bit.ly/3FAIEY9 A big thank you to our NG200 digital partner Bloomberg Philanthropies #NationalGallery #LovieAwards

What can a dress tell us about politics 300 years ago? 🤔 In François-Hubert Drouais’ painting, ‘Madame de Pompadour at her Tambour Frame’, we see a woman dressed in beautiful fabrics. But if we take a closer look at what she is wearing, there is more to the story than meets the eye. Find out more with art historian Amber Butchart: https://bit.ly/42hrTd4 #ArtHistory #Portrait #NationalGallery