The UK’s first museum exhibition devoted to works on paper by Lucian Freud is at the National Portrait Gallery in London from February 12-May 4. It will explore the artist’s lifelong preoccupation with the human face and figure from the 1930’s to the early 21st century. The focus will be on Freud’s mastery of drawing in all its forms, from pencil, pen and ink to charcoal and etching. A selected group of paintings will open up the dynamic dialogue between his practice on paper and on canvas. Ahead of the show the Gallery has acquired twelve new works from the estate of Lucian Freud including eight etchings. One of them, pictured here, depicts his fashion designer daughter Bella Freud. Bella in her Pluto T-Shirt dates to 1995.
J.M.W. Turner (1775 – 1851) – A Ship Against the Mewstone, at the Entrance to Plymouth Sound, c.1814. Image, National Gallery of Ireland
One twist to this year’s annual Turner exhibition at the National Gallery of Ireland is the inclusion of artists who found inspiration in Turner. The January show of the 31 watercolours by the master in our national collection is like a meeting of old friends after a two year gap.
The pictures were in Scotland last year when, to mark the 250th anniversary of Turner’s birth in 1775, the National Gallery exchanged their Turner’s with the National Galleries of Scotland. Both institutions benefitted from the generous bequest of wealthy English collector Henry Vaughan who stipulated that the delicate watercolours could be displayed only in January when natural light in these parts is at its lowest. So they are now out of storage until the end of the month.
J.M.W. Turner (1775 – 1851) – Ostend Harbour, c.1840. Image, National Gallery of Ireland
The exhibition – titled Turner as Inspiration – is enriched by the inclusion of watercolours and prints by artists who found inspiration in Turner’s mastery of light, colour, and atmosphere. Works by Hercules Brabazon (1821-1906), William Callow (1812-1908), John Faulkner (1835-1894) and James H. Burgess (1819-1890) highlight Turner’s influence, while Irish artists Jennifer Lane (b.1952) and Niall Naessens (b.1961) pay homage to his enduring legacy. Together, these works underscore how Turner continues to inspire new artistic generations.
Niall Naessens (b. 1961) – Quite Early One Morning, 2017 at the Turner exhibition. Photo courtesy National Gallery of Ireland.
Bequeathed in 1900 the Turner watercolours have been displayed every year since 1901 with the notable exception of the pandemic year of 2021 and 2025. Another good reason to visit our national collection right now is the fascinating Picasso: From the Studio exhibition which runs until February 22. The show, in collaboration with the Musée national Picasso Paris, places Picasso in the context of his studios and highlights the various phases of his art and life. Key locations are explored, from his arrival in Paris at the start of the 20th century to his studio in Mougins in the South of France, are explored.
2026 promises to be another blockbuster year at the gallery with an ambitious and diverse line-up that brings some of the world’s most visionary artists into dialogue across centuries, mediums and movements. From the poetic mysticism of William Blake (1757–1827) and the spiritual abstraction of Hilma af Klint (1862–1944) to the theatrical storytelling of Jan Steen (1626–1679), a year of extraordinary art encounters is in store.
Hilma af Klint (1862-1944). Altarpiece No. 1, 1915 from the the National Gallery of Ireland upcoming exhibition. Courtesy of the Hilma af Klint Foundation.
The artist and poet Blake was a defining force in Romanticism. William Blake: The Age of Romantic Fantasy curated by Tate in partnership with the National Gallery runs from April 16 to July 19. From Rembrandt to Matisse – A Celebration of European Prints and Drawings runs from June 27 to November 8 in celebration of Ireland’s presidency of the EU Council. Hilma af Klint is recognised as one of Europe’s foremost abstract painters and is one of Sweden’s most celebrated modern artists. An exhibition of paintings, drawings and watercolours developed in partnership with the Hilma af Klint Foundation, some of which have never been exhibited opens on October 15 and runs until February 7, 2027.
Marking the 400th anniversary of his birth Jan Steen: Sacred and Profane runs from November 21 to April 25, 2027. One of the leading painters of the 17th century he is renowned for his ability to capture the variety and humour of human nature, Steen’s work extends beyond the chaotic genre scenes for which he is best known, encompassing exquisitely painted religious narratives, portraits, and high-society scenes.
A photo of Thomas Wall, aged 16, from the exhibition of prisoners photographs of Kilmainham Gaol in 1921. Wall was killed during the Civil War in 1922.
An exhibition of secret photographs taken by prisoner’s in in 1921 during the War of Independence is at Kilmainham Gaol Museum until October 26 next. With smuggled cameras prisoners recorded everyday life. Photos show boxing matches, Irish language classes, religious services and drama productions. Other show men enjoying the sunshine in south facing yards, cooking food and playing with two dogs. The prisoners were released on December 8, 1921 following the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty. The exhibition is organised by the OPW.
A masterpiece by Canaletto – Venice, the Bucintoro at the Molo on Ascension Day – will lead Christie’s Old Masters auction in New York on February 4. The Bucintoro, the official galley of the Doge and a symbol of La Serenissima, was used exclusively on Ascension Day. The Molo is the quay beside the Doge’s Palace.
The spectacular celebration was a subject Canaletto returned to frequently as he brought the pomp and ceremony of the Venetian lagoon to life. This theatrical masterpiece, his last known rendition on the theme, was commissioned around 1754 by the King family (later Earls of Lovelace) and remained in their possession for almost 200 years. The first, commissioned by Britain’s first Prime Minister Robert Walpole (1676-1745), made a new world record of £31.9 million (€36.5 million) at Christie’s Old Masters evening auction in London last July.
Among the offerings at Christie’s on February 5, during what is shaping up to be an especially strong Classics Week at Christie’s in New York, is an Old Master chalk, pen and ink drawing by Claude Lorrain.
Gerard Dillon (1916-1971) – Female Bather. UPDATE: THIS PAINTING WAS WITHDRAWN FROM THE SALE
This watercolour by Gerard Dillon is at €2,000-€4,000 the most expensively estimated lot at Adam’s timed online picture sale which runs until January 13. With 325 lots in total the sale offers art by Harry Kernoff, Gary Trimble, Stella Steyn, Lillian Lucy Davidson, Robert Ballagh, Mainie Jellett, Thurloe Connolly, Mary Swanzy, Mark Rode and a wide variety of artists. The auction is on view in Dublin from 2 pm to 5 pm on January 10 and 11, from 10 am to 5 pm on Monday and online.
The auction by R J Keighery in Waterford on Monday January 12 includes a lifetime collection of clocks, railwayana and maritime items. A longcase clock with brass dial by Alex Gordon, Dublin has an estimate of €2,000-€3,000 but estimates for many others are lower than this. A 19th century Siebbe Gorman 12 bolt diving helmen is estimated at €1,500-€2,500 and an 1894 timetable for the Dingle and Tralee light railway has an estimate of €6,000-€8,000. There is a selection of old enamel road signs and the catalogue is online.
Paul Henry (1876-1958) – A Grey Day on the Bog (1928). UPDATE: THIS MADE 44,000 AT HAMMER
This oil on board by Paul Henry leads Morgan O’Driscoll’s current Irish art auction which runs online until January 12. It was acquired by the original owner from the 1928 exhibition in London. The estimate is €50,000-€70,000. A total of 288 lots of art are on the catalogue including work by Yeats, Stephen McKenna, Mr. Brainwash, Markey Robinson, James Humbert Craig, Patrick Collins and Frank McKelvey.
Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851) – Passau, Germany, at the Confluence of the Rivers Inn and Danube, Photo. National Gallery of Ireland
The National Gallery of Ireland’s annual exhibition of watercolours by J.M.W. Turner opens today and runs through January 2026. In 2026, the Gallery’s annual display of the Vaughan Bequest of Turner watercolours is enriched by the inclusion of a selection of watercolours and prints by artists who looked to Turner for inspiration.
The English artist Hercules Brabazon Brabazon (1821-1906) made regular sketching trips to Europe and his colourful watercolours reflect Turner’s style and techniques. The work of Brabazon and other nineteenth-century artists including William Callow (1812-1908), John Faulkner (1835-1894) and James H. Burgess (1819-1890) underlines the huge influence Turner had on his contemporaries, and continues to have on artists today. Prints by Irish artists Jennifer Lane (b.1952) and Niall Naessens (b.1961) show them paying homage to the master. Together, these diverse works of art illustrate how Turner has always been a forceful presence, inspiring artists to create new and exciting work.
In 2026 the gallery welcomes back its much-loved watercolours following their loan to the National Galleries of Scotland in January 2025.
IF what you really really wanted somehow did not arrive then Victor Mee’s December decorative interiors sale on December 30 might provide the answer. A full size snooker table complete with lights, cue holder, cues, a set of six caricature paintings, snooker and billiard balls and a plaque with the rules of snooker are on offer. Lot 293A is estimated at 2,000-4,000. The catalogue for the sale is online.
Pieter Brueghel the Younger – The Census at Bethlehem c1604
The Census at Bethlehem by Pieter Brueghel the Younger places the Holy Family within a bustling Flemish winter landscape. Villagers queue to register for the census, children skate, throw snowballs and drag sledges across the frozen ground and drinkers gather around a makeshift tavern carved into an oak tree. The sacred is blended into the everyday as the Holy Family at the centre pass quietly through the crowd in a moving nod to the Nativity. The c1604 work exemplified Brueghel the Younger’s ability to capture the divine in the rhythms of ordinary life and is one of the largest known depictions of the subject.
The composition derives from a painting of the same name made in 1566 by the artist’s father, Pieter Brueghel the elder now in the Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. It is one of the most revered works of the Northern Renaissance. Brueghel the Younger was only a child at his father’s death and he devoted much of his career to preserving and re-interpreting these masterful inventions with his own acute observation of daily life and meticulous detail. The Nativity has always been a favourite subject for artists and this work sold for an above estimate £5,164,000 (€5,903,300) at Sotheby’s Old Masters and 19th century paintings auction in London this month.
