Artworks depicting some of Britain’s most influential figures of the past 500 years are now in Canberra as part of The National Portrait Gallery’s (NPG) new exhibition, Shakespeare to Winehouse.
As the name suggests, Shakespeare to Winehouse runs the gamut of British identity and culture, featuring contemporary icons like David Beckham, Kate Moss, and Amy Winehouse through to figures of yesteryear like Margaret Thatcher, Henry the Eighth, and William Shakespeare.
The touring exhibition sees 84 of the National Portrait Gallery, London’s 200,000-piece strong permanent collection hit the road, many for the first time since they were acquired. It is a key selection from the world’s most extensive collection of portraiture.
The rare opportunity to see them here in Canberra has come about due to the London gallery closing for three years in 2020 to undergo extensive essential refurbishments, the largest redevelopment of the building since it opened to the public in 1896.
“We’re calling it a once in a lifetime opportunity, because a lot of these works probably won’t travel again,” NPG director, Karen Quinlan AM said.
“When the refurbishment of the National Portrait Gallery, London is completed, a lot of these works form a part of the permanent hang, and they’ll go back on display.”
The portraits that comprise Shakespeare to Winehouse have been divided up and presented thematically, rather than chronologically as they are back home, through six sections – Power, Love and Loss, Fame, Innovation, Identity, and Self.
“That’s very interesting, I think, for the public, because if you’re exploring themes like power … you start to see people like Queen Elizabeth I and Anna Wintour,” Quinlan said.
“We go from the 16th century through to the 21st century … We have them side by side regardless of the age of the work, but with that common theme, which is the genre of portraiture how that binds people.”
Established in 1856, the first work the National Portrait Gallery, London collected was the portrait of William Shakespeare produced by John Taylor circa 1600-1610, on display for this exhibition.
“It’s great to see them on our walls, I don’t think we’ve ever had works of this age here,” Quinlan said.
‘A beautiful encapsulation’ of 500 years of British art
NPG curator, Joanna Gilmour, told Canberra Daily she was “delighted” to now to open the exhibition after a great deal of work behind the scenes in preparation.
“For us to have worked with our colleagues in London to get this thing halfway across the world in the middle of a pandemic,” she said, “is really extraordinary, so we’re all feeling really uplifted.”
To prepare for the exhibition, Gilmour was tasked with learning about all the portraits and figuring out how they could best be presented to Australian audiences.
The selection and grouping of the works was done by National Portrait Gallery, London curators.
“We are able to determine design, pairings of different works, and the positionings of works, so my job comes in really helping lay the space out … to help people make sense of what they’re seeing and tell the story.”
While Shakespeare to Winehouse features household names that get people through the door, Gilmour said the exhibition has a level of depth beneath the surface that will surprise and enlighten audiences.
“Yes, there’s images of very famous people, but there’s much more to it than that,” she said.
“I see a beautiful encapsulation of 500 years of British art, so it’s a wonderful art history lesson, and it’s also just a fabulous collection of all sorts of different lives and human experiences.
“You can relate to it on all sorts of levels.”
Shakespeare to Winehouse, Icons from the National Portrait Gallery, London is on display at the National Portrait Gallery until 17 July; portrait.gov.au
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