Live Life Team
London’s National Gallery is home to 2,300 paintings that date back from mid-13th century up to the 1900s. The gallery was established in 1824 and is located in Trafalgar Square in central London.
The gallery started with humble beginnings. It only had 36 paintings on hand, which the British government purchased from John Julius Angerstain. Since then, with the dedication of the directors, especially Sir Charles Lock Eastlake, and from the donations of private entities, which composed more than sixty percent of the collection, the gallery gradually developed. The total collection of London’s National Gallery is small compared to several European national galleries, but what’s interesting is that it captures the history and important developments of Western painting, including the works of Giotto and Cézanne.
The gallery is currently in its 3rd location, since the previous buildings were already unable to accommodate the increasing number of collections. The front of the main building is the only unaltered part of the original building. The façade was made by William Wilkins, while the building was constructed in 1832. The whole building went through a lot of major and minor alterations and expansions, including the addition Sainsbury Wing, an extended portion to the west part of the building. The extension was made by Denise Scott Brown and Robert Venturi and shows the presence of Postmodernist architecture in London. The gallery is under the present supervision of Nicholas Penny. London’s National Gallery doesn’t ask for entrance fees, which makes it a very good place to visit.
