The Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize returns for its 17th year, showcasing the work of talented young photographers, gifted amateurs and established professionals in the very best of contemporary ...

Edward Blore, architect and antiquary, is best remembered for his completion of John Nash's design of Buckingham Palace, following Nash's dismissal. He completed the palace in a style similar but ...

Fashion entrepreneur and husband of Mary Quant. Plunket Greene and his wife helped to revolutionise the British fashion scene in the 1960s. Together with their friend Archie McNair, Plunket Greene and ...

Booking required for school groups only. Please see the School visits page. The Herbert Smith Freehills Portrait Award makes a welcome return to the National Portrait Gallery for 2024. The prestigious ...

The son of a mason, Kay was apprenticed at the age of thirteen to George Heriot, a barber in Dalkeith. Six years later, he moved to Edinburgh where he continued to work as a barber. In his spare time, ...

Léger was born in Argentan, France and studied at the city's School of Decorative Arts and at the Académie Julian in Paris. In 1908 he joined the colony of artists, La Ruche (The Beehive), and ...

This portrait was painted in Paris during a period of crisis in Joyce’s life, when his daughter Lucia was experiencing debilitating mental illness. He was struggling with his last novel, Finnegans ...

Painter; born in Strasbourg, he trained in Paris before coming to England in 1771. He became principal designer at Drury Lane under his friend Garrick and his work for the theatre revolutionised ...

Sir William Reynolds-Stephens was a sculptor, decorative artist and painter. Born of British parents, he was educated in Germany and England and then at the Royal Academy Schools in London from 1884 ...

Harold reigned following the death of his brother-in- law Edward 'the confessor'. He was defeated at the battle of Hastings in 1066 which marked the end of Anglo-saxon rule.

Entries for the 2025 Herbert Smith Freehills Portrait Award are now open. Submit your entry by 22:00 14 January 2025. The Gallery is home to the most extensive collection of portraits in the world.