Government Art Collection

Home
United Kingdom
London
Government Art Collection

Directions Website

A national collection of British art displayed in government buildings and exhibitions in the UK and around the world.

24/09/2026

How do you restore a historic frame? 🖼️

Before it was borrowed by the National Archives for their latest exhibition, the ornate golden frame containing a portrait of King George III was restored at the Government Art Collection.

We added new moulding to replace broken sections of the frame and adorned it with gold leaf, before painting it to match.

📍Come face to face with King George III at Revolution 250: America's Independence Story 1763–1783 at The National Archives. Until 29 November 2026.

[Video ID: close-up videos of part of an ornately carved gold frame being conserved. We see a new moulding being carved, smoothed down, and then gold leaf added, before being painted to match the surrounding frame. Finally, we see the portrait being installed at the National Archives.]

20/09/2026

A self-declared collector of clouds, artist Tacita Dean began to create her 'cloudscapes' in 2014.

A cloud can give us both dark warnings and silver linings and its shifting identity is what Dean captures in this 2016 print. Its title, 'Foreign Policy' adds another layer of meaning, reflecting on the ever-changing nature of diplomacy.

The print was commissioned by the Government Art Collection as part of the Robson Orr TenTen Award. The print is currently on display in British embassies across the world, including Berlin, Washington DC, Paris and Ankara (pictured). 📍🇩🇪🇺🇸🇫🇷🇹🇷

Tacita Dean, Foreign Policy, 2019 © Tacita Dean - Commissioned by the Government Art Collection for The Robson Orr TenTen Award 2019

[Image ID 1: a print of grey and white clouds.
Image ID 2: the print hung on a terracotta-coloured wall in a lavish interior.]

10/09/2026

Today Beryl Cook would have been 100 years old!

Known for her joyous paintings of pubs, shops and bingo halls, Beryl Cook is one of Britain's most popular artists.

‘Window Dresser 2’ was inspired by a real shop window Cook encountered. Like Cook, our attention is caught by the shop assistant in her leopard-print leggings.

There is a quiet comedy in how Cook makes the assistant, not the mannequins, the focus – maybe the most interesting thing is often the person we aren’t supposed to notice.

Earlier this year we were delighted to have 'Window-Dresser 2' on display at as part of their major exhibition 'Beryl Cook: Pride and Joy'.

Beryl Cook, Window Dresser 2, 1994 © Estate of Beryl Cook
Image by Dom Moore, courtesy of The Box Plymouth.

[Image ID 1: a painting of a woman in leopard print leggings and a black top adjusting the trousers on a mannequin in a shop window alongside three other mannequins in variety of poses and outfits.
Image ID 2: photograph of an exhibition space showing the painting described above on display, hung on an orange wall.]

24/08/2026

🐝 HaBEE birthday Graham Sutherland who was born on this day in 1903.

While best known for his surrealist landscapes and *that* infamous portrait of Winston Churchill, during the last 15 years of his life Sutherland turned his attention to the depiction of insects and animals.

These strange, yet striking, images come from Sutherland's 1977 series 'The Bees', which takes the viewer inside a beehive.

Having seen the brutality of war during his time as an Official War Artist during the Second World War, Sutherland was fascinated with how violence, but also order and co-operation, took place in the natural world as well as the human world.

The Bees are currently on display at the British Embassy in Paris 📍 🇫🇷

Graham Sutherland, Bee Keeper, Expulsion and killing of an enemy, Hatching I, The Court, Fight between workers and drones – The Bees, 1977 © Estate of the Artist

[Image ID 1: a drawing of a beekeeper in black and white on a yellow background looks to the left as some bees emerge from a beehive.
Image ID 2: three bees on a yellow background push out of a rectangle what appears to be a wasp.
Image ID 3: a bee hatching out from a yellow cell.
Image ID 4: a group of bees encircle a Queen bee in the centre
Image ID 5: a fight between drone bees and worker bees on a yellow and brown background.]

11/08/2026

A 17th century marriage scandal 💔

Discover the fascinating story behind this portrait of celebrated lutist and singer Arabella Hunt.

This work is currently on display at 'Echoes of Us' 📍 The Box, Plymouth

[Video ID: a woman with dark hair presents to camera. Images flash up on screen including a painting of a woman from the 17th century playing a lute.]

10/08/2026

Why is this woman dressed in clothes from a century before when she was painted?

Painted in 1871, 'On the River' by James Joseph Jacques Tissot shows a young woman wearing a costume characteristic of the 1790s.

Though famous for his paintings depicting modern life in Paris, Tissot produced a number of artworks that represented French society in the late 18th century – known as the 'Directoire'.

With her casual pose and coquettish gaze, Tissot's painting reflects the revived nostalgia for the time's elegance, fashion and even lax morals.

This work is currently on display in the British embassy in Paris () 📍 🇫🇷

[Image ID: a woman sits on the boat on a river. She is dressed in a white dress with a yellow patterned shawl and a black hat with a black and white stripped ribbon. She gazes out at the viewer and holds a daisy in her mouth.]

13/06/2026

Trooping the Colour takes place today!💂‍♀️💂🏻‍♂️💂🏾

This annual event is held on Horse Guards Parade, London, and has marked the monarch's official birthday since 1748.

The ceremony began as a practical parade designed to display a regiment's Colour – their flag – to troops. It was vital for troops to recognise their Colour when it was used as a rallying point on the battlefield.

Jacques Emile Blanche, Trooping the Colour before Edward VII, 20th century
Edward Bawden, Troops in the Mall, 1953
Frederick Taylor, Trooping the Colour, 20th century

[Image ID 1: standing to attention, members of the Horse Guards, dressed in their iconic red and black uniforms, are depicted during the ceremony of the Trooping of the Colour.
Image ID 2: in the centre, members of the Horse Guards in their red and black uniforms stand to attention in a square. A mass of spectators represented in blue with black outlines encircle the troops and above them is a line of trees represented in blue.
Image ID 3: a view of a grand building (the Old Admiralty Building) and an open courtyard populated with a number of troops dressed in elaborate uniform on horseback.]

11/06/2026

Happy 250th Birthday John Constable! 🎂

We are lucky enough to have a portrait by Constable in our collection, which depicts the artist's young relative Jane Anne Inglis (née Mason) when she was a teenager. A year later, Constable went back to draw Jane, in a sketch that was discovered in a Mason family album in 2020.

See the depictions reunited at Constable: A Cast of Characters at Christchurch Mansion, Ipswich, which closes on Sunday ()

John Constable, Jane Anne Inglis (née Mason), c.1808
Mason Family Album 1794-1862 © Ipswich Borough Council collection and Colchester & Ipswich Museums. With assistance from Art Fund, Arts Council V&A Purchase Grant Fund, the Friends of the Ipswich Museums and Felix Cobbold Bequest. Conservation was undertaken by Museum Conservation Services and funded by the Friends of the Ipswich Museums.

Image ID 1: half-length painting of a woman with brown hair in a white satin dress, head turned to the left.
Image ID 2: a half-length sketch of a young woman depicted with her hair up, she gazes out at the viewer.]

06/06/2026

It's Derby Day at Epsom Downs racecourse! 🏇 In this painting by Charles Ernest Cundall however, the race has been relegated to the background of the painting. Instead, Cundall focuses on the throngs of punters enjoying a day out.

Whilst we can't pick out individual faces, our attention – like those in crowd – is instead drawn to the bright lettering on the signs advertising the many bookmakers.

Charles Ernest Cundall, Derby Day, 1933 © Estate of the Artist

[Image ID: a vast view of the Epsom Downs racecourse, showing the stands, the race, cars driving up, and above all, the throngs of bookmakers and punters in the foreground.]

04/06/2026

Where to see GAC artworks in June 🌻

L. S. Lowry - 'Lancashire Fair: Good Friday, Daisy Nook' at Play Power📍Sainsbury Centre, Norwich
📆 Until 4 October 2026

Walter Sickert - 'Two Coster Girls' at Walter Sickert: Working Notes📍 Charleston, Lewes
📆 Until 11 October 2026

Paul Nash - 'Event on the Downs' at Comrades in Art: Artists Against Fascism📍 Towner Eastbourne
📆 Until 18 October 2026

Visit our website to find the full list of works on show around the UK – https://artcollection.dcms.gov.uk/explore-the-collection/on-show/

Slide 1 © Image courtesy of Towner Gallery, Eastbourne.

[Image ID 1: a photo of an exhibition showing a painting on the left of a fair, and two small sculptures of figures in a glass case on the right.
Image ID 2: a painting of two women in a dimly lit room.
Image ID 3: a photo of an exhibition showing a number of paintings on a white wall.]

Address

Old Admiralty Building, Admiralty Place
London
SW1A2BL

Website

http://govart.uk/, https://www.instagram.com/govartcol/, https://www.linkedin.com/company/government-art-collection/, ht

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Government Art Collection posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Want your organisation to be the top-listed government service in London?