'The Marquise de Seignelay' by Pierre Mignard to travel the UK for the National Gallery Masterpiece Tour’s Second Year
The National Gallery today announces the second painting which will be the focus of the National Gallery Masterpiece Tour 2025–27. The Marquise de Seignelay (1691) by Pierre Mignard will travel to our four partners between 2026 and 2027: South Shields Museum and Art Gallery (29 August 2026 – 8 November 2026); The Cooper Gallery, Barnsley (13 November 2026 – 20 February 2027); Grundy Art Gallery, Blackpool (27 February 2027 – 5 June 2027), and Ferens Art Gallery, Hull (11 June 2027 – 5 September 2027).
In this striking portrait, Mignard depicts the recently widowed Catherine-Thérèse de Goyon de Matignon-Thorigny, Marquise de Seignelay (1662–99), as a woman of cultural and international importance. She is portrayed as the sea-goddess Thetis, while her eldest son Marie-Jean Baptiste (1683–1712) is dressed as the Greek hero Achilles – Thetis’ son by the mortal Peleus. Her sumptuous robe is painted using ultramarine, a highly expensive blue pigment, as a show of her wealth and status. The extensive marine imagery references her late husband, the Marquis de Seignelay’s position as head of the French Navy. The landscape in the background likely represents the shores of Martinique, an island in the West Indian ocean which was purchased for the French crown by the Marquise’s late father-in-law in 1664.
The exhibition programme plans to highlight the unique strengths of the partner venues, with three located on the coast – an ideal context for exploring the maritime themes of the painting and deepening its resonance with their surrounding landscapes and local collections.
At South Shields, the exhibition will be enriched through co-created elements developed with New Writing North’s Young Writers programme, students from South Tyneside College, and members of Our Voice Counts.
The Cooper Gallery, Barnsley will co-produce its iteration of the exhibition with Next Big Thing, Barnsley Museums youth group, ensuring strong local engagement and creative collaboration.
Grundy Art Gallery will shape its presentation by working for a 2nd year with Blackpool’s Young People’s charity The Magic Club. Grundy is working for all three years of The Masterpiece Touring Project with The Magic Club providing the opportunity for deep engagement over time.
Ferens Art Gallery will further shape their presentation by working closely with community groups, drawing on local insights to inform and animate each exhibition, whilst providing a perspective which enriches our understanding of this painting.
The National Gallery Masterpiece Tour: Monet is currently on display at South Shields Gallery until 25 March. Monet’s The Petit Bras of the Seine at Argenteuil is presented with works from the South Shields, Laing and Shipley art collections, and artworks co-created by EBSA (Emotionally Based School Avoidant) young people, teachers, and local organisations.
It will then travel to Grundy Art Gallery between 28 March – 13 June, where it will be displayed alongside a new sonic art work produced by participants of Blackpool’s Young People’s charity, The Magic Club. Working with artist Kelly Jayne Jones, Blackpool’s young people have produced a sound-based response to their experience of Monet’s painting.
The first round of the tour will then finish at Ferens Art Gallery, 19 June – 13 September, where the picture will be part of an exhibition co-curated with Flourish, Ferens Art Gallery’s creative group for children and young people. Organised with and for disabled and neurodivergent visitors, the show will present select works from the Ferens’s vast collection alongside contemporary responses from Flourish.
Since its inception in 2014, The National Gallery Masterpiece Tour has reached 401,000 people across the UK. Our National Touring programme, including 'The National Gallery Masterpiece Tour' and other travelling exhibitions, has now reached 1,467,618 people since 2014. As part of our ongoing commitment to sharing the collection, this exhibition partnership, made possible by the generous support from Hiscox, offers four UK museums and galleries outside of London the opportunity to work with the National Gallery for three years and display three major artworks from the collection.
For this edition of the Masterpiece Tour, partners will each connect with a local community organisation to support the exhibition or public programme related to the selected painting each year. Each partner will develop their own display to explore and draw out themes most relevant to them and their communities.
National Gallery Director Sir Gabriele Finaldi said: ‘The National Gallery’s collection belongs to all of us. It is part of our duty and our honour to look after these paintings and to bring them to where people are, not just expect them to come to us. Partnering on touring exhibitions does so much more than bring beloved paintings from the collection to other places in the UK - it supports the whole country's cultural ecosystem, connects people with paintings that belong to us all, and allows us to learn and expand our own practices and interpretations through the creativity of our partner organisations and their communities. That over one million people have visited these exhibitions in the last decade proves the desire to engage with our collection is growing, and we look forward to welcoming the next million visitors across the UK.’
North East Museums Director, Keith Merrin said: ‘We’re delighted to be part of the next chapter of the Masterpiece Tour and to welcome this extraordinary painting to South Shields Museum & Art Gallery. Bringing a work of this significance to our communities reflects the shared commitment between partners to making world-class art accessible, relevant and inspiring. Since the launch of the Masterpiece Tour on 17 January, when the museum welcomed Monet’s The Petit Bras of the Seine at Argenteuil (1872), footfall to the museum has increased by over 70%, highlighting the strong appetite for high-quality art experiences amongst our community.
Specialist insurer, Hiscox, is proud to support
The National Gallery 2025–27 Masterpiece Tour
Notes to editors
Image:
NG2967
Pierre Mignard
'The Marquise de Seignelay'
1691
Oil on canvas, 194.5 × 154.4 cm
© The National Gallery, London
The National Gallery is one of the greatest art galleries in the world. Founded by Parliament in 1824, the Gallery houses the nation’s collection of paintings in the Western European tradition from the late 13th to the early 20th century. The collection includes works by Artemisia Gentileschi, Bellini, Cezanne, Degas, Leonardo, Monet, Raphael, Rembrandt, Renoir, Rubens, Titian, Turner, Van Dyck, Van Gogh and Velázquez. The Gallery’s key objectives are to care for and enhance the collection and provide the best possible access to visitors. Admission free.
Every year, the National Gallery partners with organisations and audiences across the UK in a range of different and innovative ways. We want to ensure that everyone in the UK can engage with their national collection. Over the past years we have partnered with a number of organisations through a range of projects including our flagship Masterpiece Tour, contemporary Artist-in-Residence programme, National Treasures, Visits tour and Take One Picture programme. We are always keen to hear from potential partners and explore ways in which we can engage with you and your audiences. If you are interested in partnering with us and would like more information about these exhibitions or opportunities to connect to our Learning programmes please contact: [email protected] or visit our website: nationalgallery.org.uk/about-us/the-gallery-nationwide
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South Shields Museum and Art Gallery
At the very heart of its community, South Shields Museum & Art Gallery celebrates the rich heritage of South Tyneside and the people who shaped it. The museum is spread over two floors telling the story of the borough's social, industrial and maritime history from 4,000 years ago to the present day through a range of displays, exhibitions and nationally significant works of art.
South Shields Museum and Art Gallery is part of North East Museums (formerly Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums) which is a regional museum, art gallery and archives service.
They manage twelve museums and galleries across Tyneside and the Archives for Tyne and Wear, attracting around 1 million visits a year. They run these venues and services on behalf of the local authorities of Gateshead, Newcastle, Northumberland, North and South Tyneside, and Newcastle University.
They are partially funded by these partners and also by Arts Council England (as a National Portfolio Organisation). The rest of their income is generated through commercial enterprises including shops, cafes and venue hire, and via fundraising.
They care for over 1.1 million objects - many of international importance - in archives, art, science and technology, archaeology, military and social history, fashion and natural sciences.
Their award-winning formal and informal learning activities focus on natural history, local heritage, art, science, technology, engineering and maths, and inspire over 100,000 children and young people each year.
They work with partners to engage local communities, offering creative activities inspired by their collections to help them to improve their health and wellbeing.
The Cooper Gallery
The Cooper Gallery is a welcoming, free-to-visit art gallery which opened in Barnsley town centre in 1914. With galleries over two floors, plus gift shop, cafe and gardens, the Cooper Gallery provides inspiring art and exhibitions in a calm, creative environment. The permanent art collection ranges from the 17th to 20th centuries and contains over 400 works. The Gallery and collection are owned by a board of trustees and operated by Barnsley Museums as part of Barnsley Council. The Gallery is joined by four other unique venues: Experience Barnsley Museum and Archives, Cannon Hall Museum, Park and Gardens, Worsbrough Mill Museum and Country Park, and Elsecar Heritage Centre.
Grundy Art Gallery
Grundy Art Gallery is a beacon for contemporary art in the Northwest with a growing national and international profile. It is owned and operated by Blackpool Council and offers visitors FREE access to a year-round programme of ambitious contemporary art exhibitions and events. This activity, along with its award-winning learning and engagement programme is developed and presented in collaboration with a wide range of local, national and international partners. The gallery, which is housed in a Grade II listed Carnegie building, is an Accredited Museum and an Arts Council England National Portfolio organisation. It has ambitious plans for the future, with a new extension project in the planning, and a key role in the delivery of Blackpool’s first Cultural Strategy.
The Grundy Art Gallery was opened in 1911 following a bequest by brothers John and Cuthbert Grundy who also gifted several artworks to provide the foundation of the Grundy’s collection. Today the collection includes over 2000 items including works by established artists such as Chila Kumari Singh Burman MBE, Martin Creed, Tracey Emin, Gilbert and George, Lubaina Himid CBE, Tony Heaton OBE, Augustus John, Haroon Mirza, Eric Ravilious and Mark Titchner; alongside works by regionally based emerging and mid-career talent such as Louise Giovanelli, Rachel Goodyear and Garth Gratrix.
Ferens Art Gallery
The Ferens Art Gallery, Hull, has a magnificent collection of paintings and sculptures, including works by European Old Masters, portraiture, marine painting, and modern and contemporary British art.
Highlights include artworks by Pietro Lorenzetti, Frans Hals, Antonio Canaletto, Rosa Bonheur, Frederic Lord Leighton, Stanley Spencer, Bridget Riley and Gillian Wearing.
Gifted to the city by local philanthropist Thomas Robinson Ferens in 1927, the gallery and its collection is a jewel in Hull’s civic crown. Today the Ferens’ free public programme of exhibitions and events brings ambitious masterpieces to Hull, while working with the community and artists to tell the stories of its collection and nurture creativity in the region.
About The Hiscox Group
Hiscox is a global specialty insurer, headquartered in Bermuda and listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE:HSX). With roots dating back to 1901, 2026 marks 125 years of Hiscox and we are proud of our long heritage in insuring specialist and complex risks. Our ambition is to continue to be amongst the world’s most respected specialist insurers with a diverse portfolio by product and geography. We believe that building balance between catastrophe-exposed business and less volatile local specialty business gives us opportunities for profitable growth throughout the insurance cycle.
The Hiscox Group employs over 3,000 people in 13 countries, and has customers worldwide. Through the retail businesses in the USA, UK and Europe, we offer a range of specialist insurance products in commercial and personal lines. Internationally-traded, bigger-ticket business and reinsurance is underwritten through Hiscox London Market and Hiscox Re.
Our values define our business, with a focus on people, courage, ownership and integrity. We pride ourselves on being true to our word and our award-winning claims service is testament to that. For more information, visit hiscoxgroup.com.
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