Towards Modernism

(after 1800)

Level 2: Rooms 38–46

Early Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings, and those from other experimental movements of the late 19th and early 20th century, show artists taking a more experimental approach. They include many of the Gallery’s most popular works by Vincent van Gogh, Henri Rousseau, Georges Seurat and Paul Cezanne, with a whole room dedicated to the late work of Claude Monet.

Rooms 38–45 Floorplan

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Explore the Towards Modernism rooms

Location

Room 38 (Level 2)

The Academy: European Painting 1800–1850
Location

Room 39 (Level 2)

Capturing the Landscape: European Painting 1650–1850
Location

Room 40 (Level 2)

Turner, Constable and Corot: British and French Landscape Painting 1800–1860
Location

Room 41 (Level 2)

Early Impressionism: French Painting 1860–1880
Location

Room 42 (Level 2)

Pastels
Location

Room 43 (Level 2)

Van Gogh, Gauguin and Post-Impressionism: French Painting 1880–1905
Location

Room 44 (Level 2)

Post-Impressionism: French Painting 1850–1900

Explore the Gallery by periods and styles

Medieval and Early Renaissance (1260–1550)

Made between 1260 and 1550, these are the earliest pictures in the collection. They are works of great ambition and emotion, by artists such as Botticelli, Raphael, Jan van Eyck and Leonardo da Vinci.
Renaissance (1500–1600)

Inspired by Classical Antiquity, Renaissance artists developed new subjects, poses, compositions and ways of painting. The 16th-century collection includes works by Titian, Hans Holbein the Younger and Bronzino.
Baroque (1600–1700)

Painting in Catholic Europe expressed a fresh sense of power, drama and deep spirituality, while new secular subjects were developed in the Protestant Netherlands. The 17th-century collection features artists including Rubens, Caravaggio, Velázquez, and Vermeer.
Roccoco to Romanticism (1700 – 1800)

The 18th and early 19th centuries were a remarkable period of revolution and change. Formal artistic training, public exhibitions and increased travel transformed European painting. These rooms include work by artists such as Canaletto, Turner, Ingres and Gainsborough.
Towards Modernism (After 1800)

Experimental movements developed in late-19th- and early 20th-century painting, including Impressionism. These rooms feature many of the Gallery’s best-known works by artists including Van Gogh, Seurat, Cezanne and Monet.