At the National Portrait Gallery, a Collection that is Unique in All the World
位置: National Portrait Gallery
地址: St. Martin's Pl, Charing Cross, London WC2H 0HE
In the light of a lantern, a young woman traces the profile of her lover on the wall, just before he is about to leave. His father, a potter in Corinth, works these lines into his clay. According to an ancient and fortunate legend, this is the origin of art itself. For thousands of years, before the invention of photography, the painted, sculpted and drawn portrait represented the only means for making distant or deceased people, somehow, become present. Over time, it acquired new functions, highlighting power and prestige, taste and virtue, beauty and emotion. In London, a museum celebrates the art of the portrait with an incredible collection that spans centuries. The National Portrait Gallery is a treasure trove that cannot be matched anywhere else in the world, with eleven-thousand paintings, drawings, sculptures and miniatures, as well as a section dedicated to photography that gathers together over 250.000 images. It is possible to admire masterpieces from Joshua Reynolds, William Hogarts and Andy Warhol, iconic portraits of characters such as Shakespeare and Queen Victoria, photos by masters like Henri Cartier-Bresson or Helmuth Newton, right up to contemporary artist David LaChapelle - a truly remarkable repertoire of faces and characters that tell the very story of Western Civilisation.
For the first time in the UK, the National Gallery hosts a major exhibition on Francisco de Zurbarán, Master of 17th-century Spanish painting. Nearly fifty works trace his mystical and dramatic career. Still lifes by his son Juan are also on display, alongside new curatorial insights.
The Great Contemporary Theatre of Gilbert & George
The Hayward Gallery hosts a major retrospective of Gilbert & George, featuring over sixty works from 2000 to the present. Bold photo collages, vivid colours, and provocative texts trace twenty-five years of radical art. A deep dive into urban society through the irreverent lens of the iconic British duo.
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Anselm Kiefer presents new paintings at White Cube Mason’s Yard exploring the relationship between history, memory and materiality. The exhibition investigates Van Gogh’s influence on his practice and frames a dialogue between myth and matter.