Portraits from the Renowned Collection of the National Portrait Gallery, London to Be Presented in Korea for the First Time

An Opportunity to Encounter Icons of their Times and Come Face-to-Face with Figures Who Left Their Mark on World History

Premiere of the Special Exhibition Icons and Identities

from the National Portrait Gallery, London

The National Museum of Korea (Director General: MIN Byoungchan) is joining with the National Portrait Gallery, London (Director: Dr. Nicholas Cullinan) to present the special exhibition Icons and Identities from the National Portrait Gallery, London. As 2021’s first large-scale special exhibition from overseas, seventy-eight masterpieces housed at the National Portrait Gallery, London will be introduced to the Korean public for the first time.

Established in 1856, the National Portrait Gallery, London was the world’s first museum dedicated to portraiture. It boasts an extensive collection of portraits of many of the world’s most famous faces from a wide variety of fields. The exhibition will provide a rare opportunity to enjoy a great number of portraits of figures who have shaped the history and culture of Britain and the world over the past 500 years. Consisting of five thematic sections – “Fame,” “Power,” “Love and Loss,” “Innovation,” and “Identity & Self-portrait” – the exhibition serves as a guide to exploring the multilayered connotations to be found in portraiture. Ranging from paintings executed on wooden panels dating to the sixteenth century to holographic work from the twenty-first, the works encompass diverse periods and styles. It is hoped that the exhibition will provide an opportunity to explore the past, present, and future of portraiture.

Life Stories of Seventy-six Figures Portrayed by Seventy-three Artists

The exhibition explores the many different functions and forms that portraits have had in society throughout history and their continuing relevance today. Through its thematic display, it invites audiences to draw out their own visual narratives across five centuries of British portraiture. Visitors will find joy in this opportunity to hear to the stories of the individuals represented through their portraits. The exhibition recounts the lives of seventy-six people including the literary colossus William Shakespeare; Emily Brontë, the author of Wuthering Heights; Queen Elizabeth I, who won a pivotal victory over the Spanish Armada; Charles Darwin and Sir Issac Newton, who respectively advocated the scientific theories of evolution and the law of universal gravitation; the famed rock band The Beatles and their musical successor Ed Sheeran; Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor, two of the leading actresses of their time; Tim Berners-Lee who invented the World Wide Web; football legend David Beckham; Nelson Mandela, who brought democracy to South Africa; ‘the people’s princess’ and fashion icon Diana, Princess of Wales; the family of Lord Arthur Capel, who went from affluent peerage to execution for treason; and Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, a slave trader who became enslaved himself. The stories of these people were illustrated by seventy-three of the greatest artists of their time. Portraits by celebrated talents such as Peter Paul Rubens, Anthony van Dyck, Auguste Rodin, Andy Warhol, Alex Katz, and David Hockney will leave viewers with an intense and unforgettable sensory experience.

It is hoped that the exhibition will allow us in this age where images overpower words to contemplate the meaning of the active representation that we make of ourselves (such as selfies).

Director Nicholas Cullinan of the National Portrait Gallery, London celebrated the inauguration of the exhibition with a message saying, “Icons and Identities offers a once-in-a-generation opportunity to see a selection of the Gallery’s most cherished portraits together internationally, while the building in London is temporarily closed for our Inspiring People redevelopment. It is the first time that many of these works have left the UK and the first time that out exceptional Collection will travel to Korea, giving audiences there an unprecedented opportunity to encounter some of the most accomplished portraits produced in the last five hundred years. It is particularly significant that the Gallery’s partnership with the National Museum of Korea has made this possible at a time when international travel is much reduced due to the pandemic.”

Director General MIN Byoungchan of the National Museum of Korea commented, “This special exhibition was organized in the midst of the global COVID-19 crisis. It is hoped that it will serve to assuage our thirst for the arts and culture from other parts of the world that we have been missing over the past year.”