As part of the programme of events to celebrate our Bicentenary, 12 of the nation’s most iconic and well-loved paintings from the collection are being lent to 12 venues across the UK.
Paintings including, Constable’s The Hay Wain, Turner’s Fighting Temeraire and Monet’s The Water-Lily Pond have travelled to regional centres such as Bristol, Newcastle and York. For some of the works, not least the The Wilton Diptych and Botticelli’s Venus and Mars, it is the first time that they have left the Gallery since they were acquired.
Each of the partner venues is marking the national treasure's stay with events, exhibitions and digital interventions to showcase their works.
The displays opened simultaneously on 10 May 2024, the 200th anniversary of the Gallery’s opening in London, enabling people from all over the country to see, up close, some of the greatest works in the history of Western art.