Coming SoonNational Portrait Gallery
Winston Taylor Photo Portrait Prize 2026
Starting Nov 5
Photography
Shortlisted portraits from young, amateur and professional photographers.
National Portrait Gallery
St Martin's Place, London π¬π§
The world's first public portrait gallery, the National Portrait Gallery holds the most extensive collection of portraits in the world, spanning Tudor monarchs to contemporary figures. Founded in 1856 and located steps from Trafalgar Square, the gallery reopened in 2023 following a major three-year refurbishment, with new galleries, improved public spaces, and a refreshed approach to its collection.
Showing 4 exhibitions on now and coming soon at National Portrait Gallery.
Coming Soon
National Portrait Gallery
TimeOut
Tim Walker's Fairyland: Love and Legends
Until Jan 31, 2027
Photography
Walker's five-year portrait project celebrating queer identity and LGBTQ+ trailblazers
3/5 from 1 rating
"But the amazing people in the pictures are not done justice by their dull portraits."
National Portrait Gallery
The Guardian
Issy Wood: Self-Portraits
Until Feb 28, 2027
FreePaintingContemporary Art
Masked, cropped and distorted self-portraits by the painter and musician
4/5 from 1 rating
"Theyβre weird, suffocating, intimate things, like youβve been allowed into her weakest moments, like youβre interrupting her mid-weep. You feel like you have to back out of the gallery quietly to let her get on with it."
Coming SoonNational Portrait Gallery
Mary Cassatt: Radical Impressionist
Starting Mar 11, 2027
PaintingImpressionism
The first UK retrospective devoted to the pioneering American Impressionist
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National Portrait Gallery
St Martin's Place, LondonΒ·View on artmap
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Wednesday10:30amβ6pm
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Saturday10:30amβ6pm
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Past Exhibitions
EndedNational Portrait Gallery
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer Portrait Award 2026
Ended Oct 7
Painting
44th edition of the UK's most prestigious contemporary portrait painting prize
EndedNational Portrait GalleryTimeOut
Marilyn Monroe: A Portrait
Ended Sep 6
Photography
Monroe's centenary explored through portraits by Warhol, Beaton, Avedon and 20+ photographers
3.2/5 from 5 ratings
"In that regard, and in staking her claim as an active participant in how she was perceived during her lifetime, it's a success. But Monroe is so chameleonic, so charming, so conscious of audience and image that β between star and photographer β we only get an occasional glimpse of the human behind the pictures."
EndedNational Portrait GalleryThe Guardian
Catherine Opie: To Be Seen
Ended May 31
Photography
First major UK museum show of Opie's 30-year photographic portrait practice
3.6/5 from 5 ratings
"Thereβs this constant push-pull between subterfuge and reveal, between tradition and subversion, the collective and the individual, fixity and fluidity, flattery and provocation."
EndedNational Portrait GalleryTimeOut
Lucian Freud: Drawing into Painting
Ended May 4
Drawing & Works on PaperPaintingContemporary ArtLucian Freud
The UK's most comprehensive Freud works-on-paper show: 170+ drawings from the NPG
3.3/5 from 6 ratings
"Freudβs drawings show the artistβs meticulous process, but lack the oomph of his paintings."
EndedNational Portrait Gallery
Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize 2025
Ended Feb 8
Photography
Annual portrait photography prize showcasing amateurs, emerging and established photographers