Minutes of a meeting of the Board held on Thursday 21 March 2024
Present
John Booth (Chair)
Diana Berry
Catherine Goodman LVO
Katrin Henkel
Sir John Kingman KCB FRS
James Lambert OBE
Rosemary Leith
David Marks
Dounia Nadar
Stuart Roden
Professor Molly Stevens DBE FRS FREng
Andrew Truby (Board Apprentice)
Apologies
Andrew Marr
Rosalind Nashashibi
Tonya Nelson
In attendance
Dr Gabriele Finaldi - Director
Paul Gray - Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer
Victoria Hayes - Secretary to the Board and Head of Governance (Minutes)
Andy Hibbert - Director of Finance and Resources
Jane Knowles - Director of Public Engagement
Anh Nguyen - Director of Development
Susan Noonan - Chief Commercial Officer
Christine Riding - Director of Collections and Research
John Stack - Incoming Director of Digital Innovation and Technology
Larry Keith - Keeper and Head of Conservation for item 1
Emma Capron - Acting Curator of Early Netherlandish and German Paintings, for item 1
Jill Dunkerton - Restorer, for item 1
Per Rumberg - The Jacob Rothschild Head of the Curatorial Department for items 1‒5
Ben Browne - Security Adviser for item 5
Sarah Younger - NG200 Project Director for item 10‒11
The Chairman said that DCMS had just announced the appointment of Andrew Marr as a Trustee of the Gallery but that he was unable to attend the meeting today.
The Gallery had been saddened to hear of the death of Jacob Rothschild, former Trustee and Chairman of the Gallery. Hannah Rothschild had been very moved by the way the Gallery marked her father’s death.
1. Pictures for treatment
1.1. In the conservation studio, the Head of Conservation and Keeper showed the Board, following treatment, Richard Wilson’s Holt Bridge on the River Dee (NG 6196) and The Valley of the Dee, with Chester in the Distance (NG 6197), The Trinity with Christ Crucified (NG 3662) from the Austrian School and Duccio’s The Annunciation (NG 1139). The Board approved the paintings as being ready to go back on display.
1.2. Trustees were shown Jan van Eyck's Portrait of a Man (Self Portrait?) (NG 222), for which they had an examination report. The Board approved the treatment proposed.
1.3. The Head of Conservation and Keeper showed the Board Eva Gonzalès’s La Psyché (The Full-length Mirror), which the Gallery had recently acquired and which had arrived in the studio that morning. He said it would make an excellent addition to the Gallery’s collection.
2. Declarations of Interest
2.1. A Trustee declared an interest in a potential joint venture with a potential donor and said he would keep the Board informed.
3. Minutes of the meeting held on 1 February 2024 and matters arising
3.1. The Minutes were approved.
3.2. The actions are ongoing.
3.3. The Chairman said that at a recent meeting of the National Gallery Trust, the Board had approved a grant towards the purchase of Eva Gonzalès’s La Psyché (The Full-length Mirror), which the Trustees had seen in the Conservation Studio, and which would be announced as a Bicentenary acquisition.
4. Loans Out paper
4.1. The Jacob Rothschild Head of the Curatorial Department presented the loans out paper, which was approved.
5. Director’s Report
5.1. The Director gave his presentation. He said that following cleaning and restoration, Poussin’s Eucharist (NG 6700) went on display that morning in Room 31.
5.2. He reported that Friday Lates continued to be very popular.
5.3. He presented plans for the Bicentenary weekend starting on 10 May.
5.4. Information has been excluded under s.23, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000
6. Presentation of the Research Strategy
6.1. The Director of Collections and Research presented the strategy.
6.2. She said that an extensive research review had been commissioned and interviews held both with National Gallery colleagues involved with research and with colleagues from other national and international museums.
6.2‒6.6. Information has been excluded under s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
6.7. The strategy was approved. The Chairman thanked the Director of Collections and Research for all the work being done.
7. Presentation of the National Gallery three-year plan 2024‒2027
7.1. A Trustee said that the proposals outlined in the plan had recently been reviewed and approved by the Finance Committee. Information has been excluded under s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
7.2. The Director of Finance and Resources presented the plan. Information has been excluded under s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
7.3‒7.4. Information has been excluded under s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
7.5. The Board endorsed the plan for 2024‒2027.
8. Management Accounts and Development Report
8.1. The Director of Finance and Resources presented the Management Accounts which were noted.
8.2. The Director of Development presented the Development Report which was noted.
9. Annual presentation on funds held in National Gallery Trust/NGT Foundation/American Friends of the National Gallery
9.1. The Director of Finance and Resources presented the paper which was for information.
10. Update on the NG200 Welcome and Bicentenary Programme
10.1. The Project Director joined the meeting and gave a presentation on progress in the capital projects.
11. Information has been excluded under s.22, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
11.1‒11.3 Information has been excluded under s.22, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
12. Report from the Chief Commercial Officer of National Gallery Global Ltd
12.1. The Chief Commercial Officer presented her report, which was noted.
13. Committees of the Board and others, reporting since the last Board meeting
3.1. The Board noted the Minutes of the Scientific Consultative Group held on 20 January.
13.2. The Board noted the Minutes of the Ethics Committee held on 5 March. The Chair of the Committee said that the Committee was proposing a change of name to reflect more accurately the work the Committee did. The Board approved the Committee changing its name to the Corporate and Donations Review Committee. The Chair presented a paper on how the Committee felt it should review donations, broken down by category. The Board approved the approach taken in the paper.
13.3. The Board noted the Minutes of the Finance Committee held on 5 March. The Chair of the Committee said that aside from discussing the Gallery’s three-year plan, presented to Trustees earlier in the meeting, the Committee had approved the appointment of a new Security provider.
13.4.The Board noted the Minutes of the Audit Committee held on 5 March.
13.5.The Board noted the Minutes of the Masterplan Committees held on 22 January and 5th March.
13.6.The Chair reported on the last meeting of the Bicentenary Board held on 19 March.
14. Results of the Security Tender
14.1. The Board noted the paper, and the decision of the Finance Committee to appoint a new Security provider.
15. AOB
15.1. A Trustee reported that he had attended the Articulation final in the British Library the previous day and had been extremely impressed with the quality of the presentations. The Chair thanked a Trustee for her involvement in fundraising for Articulation.
15.2. The Chair said that by the time the Board next met, the Gallery would have celebrated the anniversary of the beginning of its 200th year. A huge amount of work was going on to deliver the programme of events for the Bicentenary and he congratulated all involved on behalf of the Board.