London’s National Gallery is easy to take for granted. I walked past it at least twice a day when I worked in an office nearby. But a recent trip inside reminded me why the National Gallery is a true national treasure.
I visited the National Gallery about a week before Christmas so Trafalgar Square was looking very festive. Stalls selling gifts and winter warmer foods circled the iconic London square that the National Gallery overlooks. So the view from the top of the steps outside the entrance was even better than usual.
That might have also been why there was a lengthy queue to get in! Or maybe it’s always the case. Either way, there’s an easy workaround as you can pre-book your free entry online and go straight in. When we saw the queue we quickly went online and booked the first available slot just a few minutes later. If you’ve booked for an exhibition you’ll also go straight in. And I’d recommend booking exhibitions in advance as they can be popular and sell out.
Once inside the amount of incredible art on offer can feel a bit overwhelming. So I’d suggest focusing on one area or collection. There’s a helpful floorplan on the wall just after you go inside or you can download it in advance. On this visit, we decided to cover rooms 30-45 to see the National Gallery’s 17th, 18th century & Impressionist paintings.
The contrast in art across this period really strikes you when you see it in a series of rooms like this. Room 34’s Constable, Gainsborough and Turner paintings are very different to the Matisse, Renoir and Rousseau pieces on display.
We also loved seeing the Monets, including two from the Water Lily series. Earlier in the year, my friend and I had seen five of these at a gallery on Naoshima island in Japan. It’s amazing to think that people thousands of miles and oceans apart are appreciating paintings from the same series. Another highlight was Georges Seurat’s famous painting Bathers at Asnières which he reworked after inventing the technique of using dots of contrasting colour to create a vibrant, luminous effect.
However, one thing to bear in mind is that the National Gallery collection is huge and what is on display changes regularly. So if there is something you particularly want to see it’s best to search the online catalogue to check if it’s currently on display.
Once you’ve toured the rooms, there is of course a cafe and a shop. I love a gallery or museum shop and the National Gallery doesn’t disappoint. There are always plenty of items linked to the current exhibitions, which at the time included one about Van Gogh. And lots of other goodies and books, including a nice children’s selection.
And, if like me, you enjoy combining culture with cocktails, I can recommend the underground Larry’s bar which is just around the corner in the vaults of the National Portrait Gallery. It’s a cool speakeasy-style space with live music and does a range of signature cocktails as well as any classic you’d like. We just walked in but you can book in advance. The perfect place to relax and reflect on what the fabulous National Gallery has to offer.
For more posts about galleries, museums and theatre productions, visit the new Arts section of my blog.