News and past events

Derek Holdaway at the National Trust explores a miniature of Richmond Thackeray (1781-1816), probably executed by George Chinnery in India.
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This paper discusses the painting of the courtier and writer Sir William Killigrew and the companion portrait of his wife Mary Hill, Lady Killigrew, both painted in 1638, by Sir Anthony van Dyck (1599–1641). The pair were acquired by Tate in 2002 and 2003 from two entirely different sources.
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The subject of this paper is a portrait of the celebrated eighteenth-century dancer, Auguste Vestris, acquired by Tate in 1955, when it was attributed to Gainsborough Dupont, nephew of Thomas Gainsborough. The paper argues that the portrait is in fact by Gainsborough himself and, through a discussion of the context in which it was made, sheds new light on Gainsborough's close relations with the world of the London stage.
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Details of portrait conservation projects by Ronald Moore.
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This exhibition gives a fascinating glimpse into the life and leisure time of a Wirral family during the Edwardian era. The pictures were taken by Jack Urton, a keen amateur photographer, who lived in Birkenhead and later in Bebington. We see his family at home and in the garden, with relatives and friends, and on days out in Wirral and further afield.
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This selection of some of the most elegant fashions for men and women shows how people have dressed to impress for all occasions from the 1770s to the 1970s. The exhibition explores ideas about clothing etiquette and aims to demonstrate how changing tastes have affected what we regard as elegant. Luxurious accessories and children's clothes are also displayed. With replica costumes to try on.
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‘Face Value’ looks at portraits which have been created for two very different audiences – the public at large; and private viewers consisting of family, friends and acquaintances. Using pictures and objects drawn from the museum’s own collection as well as other museums, artists and collectors, it explores the numerous ways in which likenesses have been used, since ancient times, to perpetuate social ideals, capture character, and strengthen bonds of intimacy.
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Unseen photography and footage of Britain's faceless war wounded from the First World War, displayed alongside contemporary uniform sculptures tracing their surgery, rehabilitation and recovery, in a groundbreaking new exhibition.
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An exhibition of portraiture from the 20th century – a time of dramatic social, cultural and political change.
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The three artists in this exhibition use portraiture and self-portraiture to explore and communicate their thoughts and experiences. Each artist has had contact with Bethlem services in the past and made work in art sessions within the Occupational Therapy Department on site during their recovery. This exhibition is testimony to their talent and vision and acts as an inspiring reminder of the vital role that art can play in people's lives and well being.
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Using an interdisciplinary approach and thought-provoking images from several time periods, Posing Questions highlights key issues in the social significance of portraiture itself.
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In 1657, Rembrandt was commissioned to paint the wealthy Amsterdam lady Catrina Hooghsaet. Thanks to Rembrandt's lasting international reputation, it probably came to Britain as early as the 1720s and has been at Penrhyn Castle, near Bangor, since the 1860s. This is a special loan of Rembrandt's Portrait of Catrina Hooghsaet from Penrhyn Castle alongside original etchings from the Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales collection.
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The National Library of Wales’ collection contains over 200,000 portraits spanning centuries of history, art, biography and fame. At its heart are portraits relating to Wales and the other Celtic nations. Portraits come in many forms - paintings, photographs, sculptures, engravings, drawings and various other media of artistic representations of a person, in which the face and expression are of primary importance. This exhibition features includes framed works of art, portrait busts and photographs, under various themes, such as music, entertainment, sport, religion, politics, and the arts. This is by no means a definitive list of the famous faces of Wales, and aims only to highlight the richness and variety of the Library’s collection.
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An exploration of painting, and other arts, in miniature, the highlight of which is Isaac Oliver's masterpiece The Three Brothers Browne
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Britain's army has represented one of the world's most diverse workforces, relying on black and Asian soldiers in peace and in adversity. This website brings together those stories and experiences to reveal a new history of the Army.
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From her childhood Queen Elizabeth's face has been captured repeatedly on film and canvas. Many of these representations have been the source of several stamps, and even more proposed stamp designs. This British Postal Museum & Archive exhibition takes a closer look at some of these philatelic portraits.
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This British Postal Museum & Archive exhibition explores the evolution of Arnold Machin's classic profile portrait of the Queen
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Between 1937 and 1938 Humphrey Spender took over 900 pictures of Bolton at the request of Tom Harrisson, one of the founders of the Mass-Observation project. Spender's Worktown photographs offer a fascinating insight into the lives of ordinary people living and working in a British pre-War industrial town.
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Self Guided trail for families.
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Disability is no respecter of person. Those represented on the walls of the National Portrait Gallery and in its collections are among the most celebrated members of British society but among them are many with disabilities. Some are celebrated in literature: Richard III was famously depicted by Shakespeare as ‘Crookback’, while the poet Byron who had a foot disability, or ‘club-foot’, has been vilified as having ‘the face of an angel on a devil’s body’.
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The Lander Gallery in Truro unveils a remarkable portrait by Mary Winifred Freeman (1866- 1961), depicting her brother-in-law Charles Napier Hemy, painted in his floating studio in 1892.
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The National Portrait Gallery and the Harris Museum & Art Gallery, Preston, acquire a portrait of one of the giants of the Industrial Revolution not exhibited since 1883.
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Philip Mould Fine Paintings has identified this portrait of Elizabeth dating to the very start of her reign. She is shown in a simple black costume with an ermine trim, and holds a pair of gloves in one hand and a prayer book in the other. X-ray and infra-red examination has revealed another complete portrait of Elizabeth underneath the present picture, in which she is seen looking directly at the viewer.
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The National Army Museum is pleased to announce that the appeal to save the J S C Schaak painting of General Wolfe - victor of the Battle of Quebec and a hero of the Seven Years War - from export to a private collection overseas has been successful.
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The National Conservation Centre produces plaster replicas of Michael Rysbrack’s bust of the architect James Gibbs (1682-1754)
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A beautiful portrait of Princess Mary (1631 - 1660), the eldest daughter of Charles I, by Anthony van Dyck, has been saved for the nation and will return to the palace where it appears to have hung in the last days of the reign of the sitter's ill-fated father. The portrait of Mary, Princess Royal, later Princess of Orange and mother of William III, has been acquired by the nation through the Acceptance in Lieu Scheme and allocated to Historic Royal Palaces and is now on display at Hampton Court Palace from Thursday 12 February 2009.
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