Your support allows us to ensure that iconic and important works of art remain accessible for everyone. In recent years, with help from donors, we have secured two important works of art by George Stubbs, The Kongouro from New Holland and Portrait of a Large Dog. These paintings of a kangaroo and a dingo were the first images of Australian animals ever to be shown in Britain in 1773. Having acquired these images in 2013 they are now available to view free of charge in the new Sackler gallery: ‘Pacific Encounters’ at the National Maritime Museum.

One of the most iconic pieces in our collection, the Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I, was also acquired via a fundraising campaign. Donors raised over £10 million allowing the painting, by an unknown artist, to enter public ownership for the first time in its 425 year history. The work now hangs in the Queen’s House, on the site of Greenwich Palace, Elizabeth I’s birthplace.

Not only are we working to acquire important historical works of art, we also acquire significant works of art by contemporary artists. In 2018 we received Ship of Fools, by American artist Kehinde Wiley into the collection. Wiley, known for his recent painting of Barack Obama, is a major figure in contemporary American art. This powerful painting confronting contemporary issues of migration and cultural identity is the first work by Kehinde Wiley to enter a public collection in the United Kingdom and is also on display in the Queen’s House.

It is your support that allows us to acquire and protect these works of historical significance and keep them accessible to all, for free.