Our latest stories
Why is this little angel covered in bees?
and what does this tell us about myths and their meanings?
Watch as Charlotte Wytema, our Simon Sainsbury Curatorial Fellow, reveals the lesson that underlies this intriguing painting.
Picture of the month
August 2022: La Dama in Rosso
Curatorial Trainees Emma Meehan and Chloe Church examine Moroni's mysterious ‘La Dama in Rosso’ – the painting voted for by you
Recreating Saint Sebastian
Holly James Johnston explores Saint Sebastian's resonance within the queer community and recreates Cima's 'Saint Sebastian' in drag
Picture of the month
July 2022: The Infant Saint John with the Lamb
Sixth form student and Articulation alumna Nicole Conteh explores Murillo’s tender portrayal of a young Saint John
Why is there someone drawing graffiti inside the church?
and what does this tell us about how artists use their imagination when painting everyday life?
Join Justine Rinnooy Kan, our Dorset Curatorial Fellow, as she looks at some behaviour we wouldn't expect to see inside a church.
Behind the scenes in Conservation
How we uncovered the secrets of the Gallery’s oldest painting
Learn about the surprising discoveries which were revealed during the restoration of Margarito d’Arezzo’s 'Virgin and Child Enthroned'
Why does this man appear twice in the same painting?
and what does this tell us about miracles?
Dr Ayla Lepine, The Howard and Roberta Ahmanson Fellow in Art and Religion, explains something we may not have even noticed in this picture - a man who appears twice.
The art of fashion
From the London catwalk to the ballrooms of Bridgerton, see how fine art has inspired high fashion
Picture of the month
May 2022: Bathers at Asnières
Christina Bradstreet explores the theme of loneliness in Seurat’s ‘Bathers at Asnières’ for Mental Health Awareness Week
Behind the scenes in Conservation
A sky of 500-year-old fingerprints
Larry Keith retouches a recently repaired panel painting by Piero di Cosimo, and reveals the marks this Renaissance artist left in his work
Why does this lady have a fly on her head?
and what can this tell us about the tricks artists play?
Dr Francesca Whitlum-Cooper, The Myojin-Nadar Associate Curator of Paintings 1600–1800, investigates the unusual addition to 'Portrait of a Women from the Hofer Family'.
Unexpected views
Tom Lovelace on Georges Seurat's ' Bathers at Asnières'
Artist Tom Lovelace discusses his continuing affinity with Seurat's 'Bathers at Asnières', the inspiration for his reflective performance 'Bathers' at the Gallery.
Curator's introduction
Gainsborough's Blue Boy
Christine Riding, the Jacob Rothschild Head of the Curatorial Department, introduces the exhibition in this recorded live talk
Picture of the month
April 2022: The Avenue, Sydenham
Fiona Alderton imagines walking through this spring scene by Pissarro – as voted for by you
Behind the scenes in Conservation
Cleaning Constable's 'The Hay Wain'
Paul Ackroyd reveals some of 'The Hay Wain's' hidden details which have been brought to life through cleaning
Artist's introduction
Kehinde Wiley at the National Gallery: The Prelude
Kehinde Wiley introduces his exhibition at the Gallery and explains why he thinks 'paintings have to punch you in the gut'
Four women who helped shape art history
Maria Alambritis and Imogen Tedbury shine a light on some of the lesser-known women who played a crucial role in Renaissance and Early Modern artists’ studios
Behind the scenes in Conservation
Cleaning Reynolds' 'Captain Robert Orme'
Hayley Tomlinson reveals why paintings by Reynolds are notoriously difficult to clean
Picture of the month
March 2022: The Garvagh Madonna
For Women's History Month, Professor Hilary Fraser looks at Raphael’s tender portrait of the Madonna and Child with John the Baptist
Jim Broadbent meets 'The Duke of Wellington'
Actor Jim Broadbent meets the co-star of his new film 'The Duke' for the first time
The Linbury Lecture 2021
Joseph Koerner: Dürer's mobility
American art historian and filmmaker Joseph Koerner gives the 2021 Linbury Lecture on the occasion of The Credit Suisse Exhibition: 'Dürer's Journeys'
Curator's introduction
Kehinde Wiley at the National Gallery: The Prelude
Christine Riding, the Jacob Rothschild Head of the Curatorial Department, introduces the exhibition in this recorded live talk
Picture of the month
February 2022: The Blue Boy
Art historian Dan Vo looks at the queer history of Gainsborough's ‘Blue Boy’ for LGBTQ+ History Month
Behind the scenes in Conservation
Displaying 'The Red Boy'
Follow the newly-cleaned 'Red Boy's' journey from the Conservation Studio to the Gallery walls
Why is Gainsborough's 'Blue Boy' so famous?
100 years after leaving the UK, find out why 'The Blue Boy' remains one of the nation's favourites
Picture of the month
January 2022: Men of the Docks
We start the year with George Bellows's icy scene of New York dockworkers
10-minute talks
Tiepolo's 'Allegory with Venus and Time'
Letizia Treves, James and Sarah Sassoon Curator of Later 17th-Century Paintings looks up at Tiepolo's colourful ceiling painting
Unexpected views
Zadie Xa and Benito Mayor Vallejo on Poussin's 'Adoration of the Golden Calf'
Contemporary artists Zadie Xa and Benito Mayor Vallejo discuss one of Poussin's greatest works with curator Priyesh Mistry
Behind the scenes in Conservation
Restoring Piero della Francesca's 'Nativity'
Caroline Campbell and Jill Dunkerton discuss the conservation of Piero della Francesca's miraculous Christmas scene
What can one colour tell us about a painting?
Our Conservation Fellow, Kendall Francis takes a closer look at indigo, a blue dye and pigment extracted from the leaves of plants, and how it is used and represented in paintings in our collection.
Sign up to our newsletter to be the first to see our new stories
Behind the scenes
Find out what happens behind closed doors in this series of films that look at how we care for and conserve our paintings.
Dance to the Music of Our Time
Watch performances by contemporary artists exploring the power of storytelling through dance and movement
Women artists in the collection
Trailblazers and rule-breakers; discover some of the female artists in the collection including Artemisia Gentileschi, Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun and Rosa Bonheur.
'Flowers in a Terracotta Vase'
Jan van Huysum's 'Flowers in a Terracotta Vase' travelled across the UK to a series of unexpected locations, including a food bank, walled garden and covered market. See how people responded to the painting in our short films.
One painting, many voices
From recreating 'Mr and Mrs Andrews' for a wedding invitation to adapting a Titian for the cover of a top-selling album, find out how one painting can mean very different things to different people.
Read and watch our highlight series below or browse our archive of features and films
Make and create
Get stuck in with online art tutorials you can follow at home.
A curated look
Short talks from our curators, filmed from their homes for you to enjoy in yours.
5-minute meditation
Let go of thoughts of the past and worries for the future with a mindful look at one painting.
Latest films
This is a YouTube video player. Below the video are the title, view time and description. Below that is a carousel of video thumbnails. Clicking a thumbnail will load and play that video.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel for our latest films