Minutes of a meeting of the Board held on Thursday 26 September 2024
Present
John Booth CVO DL (Chair)
Diana Berry
Katrin Henkel
James Lambert OBE
Rosemary Leith
David Marks
Andrew Marr
Dounia Nadar
Rosalind Nashashibi
Tonya Nelson
Stuart Roden
Professor Dame Molly Stevens DBE FRS FREng
Andrew Truby (Board Apprentice)
Apologies
Catherine Goodman LVO
Sir John Kingman KCB FRS
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 - Chief Financial Officer
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 - Director of Digital Innovation and Technology
Larry Keith - Keeper and Head of Conservation for item 1
Bart Cornelis - Curator of Dutch and Flemish Paintings 1600–1800 for item 1
Christopher Riopelle - The Neil Westreich Curator of Post-1800 Paintings for item 1
Kristina Mandy - Assistant Conservator for item 1
Per Rumberg - The Jacob Rothschild Head of the Curatorial Department for items 1‒5
Sunnifa Hope - Head of Trafalgar Square exhibitions for item 8
Alexandra Kavanagh - Head of National Touring exhibitions for item 8
Sarah Younger - NG200 Project Director for item 9
1. Pictures for treatment:
1.1. In the conservation studio, the Head of Conservation and Keeper showed the Board, following treatment, Orazio Gentileschi’s, 'The Finding of Moses' (NG6684), Paul Cezanne’s 'Bathers (Les Grandes Baigneuses)' (NG6359), Pieter de Hooch’s 'A Woman and her Maid in a Courtyard' (NG794) and Diego Velázquez’s 'Philip IV of Spain' (NG745). The Board approved the paintings as being ready to go back on display
1.2. Trustees were shown Mattia Preti’s 'The Feast at Cana' (NG6372), Catharina Van Hemessen’s 'Portrait of a Man' (NG1042), Jan Wijnants’s 'Peasants driving Cattle and Sheep by a Sandhill, and Two Sportsmen with Dogs' (NG884), a German painting, after Martin Schongauer, 'The Entombment' (NG1151), Karel Dujardin’s, 'Sheep and Goats' (NG985) and Salomon van Ruisdael’s 'A Landscape with a Carriage and Horsemen at a Pool' (NG1344), for which they had examination reports. The Board approved the treatments proposed.
1.3. Information has been excluded under s.22, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
2. Declarations of Interest
2.1. There were no declarations of interest.
3. Minutes from the meeting held on 11 July 2024 and matters arising:
3.1. The Minutes from the meeting held on 11 July were approved.
3.2. There were no matters arising.
3. Annual Report and Accounts, Report from the Audit Committee and Risk Register:
3.1. Subject to a couple of minor comments, the Board endorsed the Audit Committee’s approval of the Annual Report and Accounts, the Report from the Audit Committee and the Risk Register.
4. Loans Out:
4.1. The Jacob Rothschild Head of the Curatorial Department presented the Loans Out paper which was approved.
5. Information has been excluded under s.22, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000
5.1-5.2. Information has been excluded under s.22, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
6. Director’s Report:
6.1. The Director gave his presentation. He encouraged Trustees to view two long loans that had recently come in and were on display in the galleries: Paul Cezanne’s 'Curtain, Jug and Dish of Fruit' which is on display in Room 43 and Floris van Dijck’s 'Still life with Cheeses, Grapes, Apples and Pears on pewter and porcelain Plates with a Roemer, Bread Roll and Nuts' on display in Room 23.
6.2. He said that during the summer the Gallery had made its third Bicentenary acquisition, Alma Tadema’s 'After the Audience', which is now hanging in Room 45.
6.3. He reported that 'Van Gogh: Poets and Lovers' exhibition had opened earlier in the month and had been very well received with five-star reviews.
7. Information has been excluded under s.22, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000
7.1. Information has been excluded under s.22, s.36 and s.43 FOI 2000.
8. Report from the Head of Trafalgar Square Exhibitions and the Head of National Touring Exhibitions and a presentation on the years ahead:
8.1. The Head of Trafalgar Square Exhibitions and the Head of National Touring Exhibitions joined the meeting and gave their presentation.
9. Update on NG200 Welcome and Bicentenary Programme:
9.1. The NG200 Project Director joined the meeting and updated the Board on progress in the NG200 Welcome project. Progress in the Bicentenary Programme was noted.
10. Report from the Chief Commercial Officer:
10.1. The Chief Commercial Officer presented her paper, which was noted.
11. Committees of the Board and others, reporting since the last Board meeting:
11.1. The Minutes of the Nominations Committee held on 13 September were noted. The Board endorsed the Committee’s decision to appoint Tonya Nelson as the ex officio deputy Chair when Katrin Henkel retired from the Board in November.
11.2. The Chair of the Masterplan Committee updated Trustees on the meeting held on 17 September.
11.3. The Chair of the Digital Advisory Board updated Trustees on the meeting held on 20 September and said it was proud of what the Gallery had achieved digitally for the Bicentenary. She said that the 200 creators project was a phenomenal success across the sector.
12. Management Accounts and Development Report:
12.1. The Chief Financial Officer presented the Management Accounts which were noted.
12.2. The Director of Development presented the Development Report which was noted.
13. Grant applications to AFNGL:
13.1. The grant applications to AFNGL were approved.
14. Annual Freedom of Information report:
14.1. The Annual Freedom of Information report was noted.
15. AOB: None
John Booth
Chair