National Portrait Gallery: the reopening review
After a £41m renovation the gallery has reopened its doors and the result is a triumph
![A ‘serious, stylish history’: Lady Margaret Beaufort by Meynart Weywyck (c. 1510)](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/AprPRbJi5zWrZ63JfSwdrS-415-80.jpg)
In 2020, the National Portrait Gallery closed for renovations. And they were much needed, said Laura Freeman in The Times: its entrance hall was “poky”, and its collection “dusty and undervisited” – overshadowed by the museum’s “shiny, shouty” temporary exhibitions. It has since undergone “a £41m makeover” helmed by Jamie Fobert Architects – and the result, I’m happy to say, is a triumph.
This is not a “tweakment”, it is a full-scale overhaul: new public spaces have been created, the gallery’s basement has been expanded, and its collection completely rehung in order to tell a “serious, stylish history of our nation and its people”, from the Tudor era to the present day. The galleries, repainted in “imperial purple, royal blue and guardsman red”, are simply “magnificent”: you’ll see everything from works by Hogarth and Holbein to Paul McCartney’s photograph of a smoking George Harrison. The captions, meanwhile, are written in “English, not the usual gallery garble”, providing “balance”, “clarity” and “context”. Most importantly, the revamped museum exudes “a real sense of delight in the making and materials of art”.
The refurb has evidently taken “immense effort”, said Jonathan Jones in The Guardian. The lighting of the galleries is superb, the curation “erudite and thoughtful”. This can’t, however, disguise the fact that this is “a museum with barely any great art in it”. Its collection is stuffed with so-so paintings attributed to unnamed studio hands or followers of artists such as van Dyck. Some new works have been acquired in the past three years, but many of these aren’t up to much. Even a portrait of Mai, a Pacific Islander, by Joshua Reynolds that the gallery describes as its most significant acquisition in years, doesn’t “hold your gaze long”. Despite the refurb, the NPG is back where it always was: “as a collection of notable faces with no regard for artistic depth”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
That’s a bit harsh, said Ben Luke in the Evening Standard. Certainly, some of the contemporary works – notably a “dreadful” double portrait of the Prince and Princess of Wales – “make me wince”. Yet there’s plenty of fascinating stuff here. Highlights include a room of death masks of figures including those of William Blake and William Wordsworth; a “brooding” self-portrait bust by Jacob Epstein; and Michael Armitage’s “visionary” tapestry depicting refuse collectors during the pandemic. Even the doors, onto which Tracey Emin has etched a series of 45 female faces, are interesting. Elsewhere, holdings of works by female and ethnic-minority artists have been augmented significantly, making a visit a “more democratic, more diverse” experience. The renovations have been a real success, transforming what was once “one of the world’s most underwhelming” major art galleries into an impressively modern museum.
National Portrait Gallery, London WC2 (020-7306 0055, npg.org.uk). Now open to the public
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Paloma recipe: the cocktail of the summer
The Week Recommends This refreshing drink balances the fresh and fizzy taste of grapefruit soda with a subtle flavour of smooth tequila
By Rebekah Evans, The Week UK Published
-
Mushroom edibles are tripping up users
the explainer The psychedelics can sometimes have questionable components
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Prisons are simply not prepared for extreme heat
Under the radar Inmates are at severe risk of heat-related illness
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
6 coastal homes in Cape Cod
Feature Featuring a wall of glass in Mashpee and an undulating roofline in Wellfleet
By The Week Staff Published
-
Peng Shepherd's 6 favorite works with themes of magical realism
Feature The author recommends works by Susanna Clarke, George Saunders, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Francis Alÿs: Ricochets – a 'heart-stopping' exhibition at London's Barbican
The Week Recommends 'Mesmerising' films of children at play around the world from Kharkiv to Mosul
By The Week UK Published
-
Mishal Husain: BBC journalist shares her six favourite books
The Week Recommends Newsreader and Radio 4 presenter picks works by Louisa May Alcott, Jamil Ahmad and more
By The Week UK Published
-
Eno: 'stimulating and cerebral' documentary that's never the same twice
The Week Recommends A 'fascinating' look at the mercurial British musician and activist Brian Eno
By The Week UK Published
-
Longlegs: 'nerve-jangling and devilishly bleak' horror film
The Week Recommends Nicolas Cage gives perhaps the most 'terrifying' performance of his career as the titular serial killer
By The Week UK Published
-
The CIA by Hugh Wilford: 'lively and original' history of America's spy agency
The Week Recommends The book has been dubbed a 'must-read' for those interested in intelligence and national-security affairs
By The Week UK Published
-
Laura van den Berg's 6 favorite books with hidden secrets
Feature The author recommends works by Patricia Lockwood, Gillian Flynn, and more
By The Week US Published