National Gallery Highlights10 Must-See Masterpieces

This 1434 masterpiece is a miracle of oil painting. Van Eyck captures every texture—fur, brass, glass—with microscopic detail. The convex mirror reflects the entire room and two witnesses, while the single candle and dog symbolize faith and fidelity. complexity. It remains one of art history’s most analyzed and debated images.

Leonardo’s mysterious vision (c. 1491-1508) places holy figures in a dark, fantastic grotto. He uses smoky shadows (sfumato) to soften outlines, creating a dreamlike atmosphere. The scientific precision of the geological formations reveals his dual genius as artist and scientist. It is a masterpiece of atmospheric perspective.

A portrait of power and mortality. Two wealthy diplomats stand amidst objects of learning, but a distorted shape slashes across the bottom. Viewed from the side, it resolves into a skull—a hidden "memento mori" reminding us that death haunts even the most successful lives.

Velázquez’s only surviving female nude (1647-51) was painted for a private collection, as such images were forbidden in Spain. Venus turns her back to us, her face visible only as a blur in the mirror held by Cupid. It explores the nature of looking and desire with lush, loose brushwork.

Caravaggio brings spiritual drama down to earth. Painted in 1601, it captures the shock of disciples recognizing the risen Christ. The theatrical lighting and ordinary details—a torn sleeve, a basket teetering on the edge—make the divine moment feel intensely, forcefully real.

Constable’s 1821 landscape changed art by finding majesty in a simple English farm scene. He refused to idealize, painting the clouds and changing weather with scientific accuracy. Its fresh naturalism stunned French artists and paved the way for Impressionism.

Britain’s favorite painting. A ghostly war hero of the age of sail is towed to its doom by a dark, modern steam tug. Turner sets the scene against a blazing sunset, creating a poignant elegy for a lost era. It dissolves form into pure light and color, anticipating modern abstraction.

Seurat applied science to leisure in this monumental 1884 scene. Using precise dots of color (Pointillism), he froze working-class Parisians in a silent, shimmering haze. The factory smokestacks in the background hint at the modern industrial world these bathers are escaping.

Van Gogh painted these radiating blooms (1888) as a welcome gift for Gauguin. Using thick impasto and varying yellows, he turned a simple still life into an explosion of emotion and vitality. They symbolize friendship, gratitude, and the life force itself.

In his final years, Monet immersed himself in his garden pond. This large canvas (post-1916) eliminates the horizon, plunging the viewer into a floating world of reflection and color. It is a meditation on nature that pushes Impressionism toward pure abstraction.