Courtauld Gallery

Frommer's Review

The nucleus of this collection was acquired by Samuel Courtauld, who upon his death in 1947, left it to the University of London. Today it houses the biggest collection of Impressionist and post-Impressionist paintings in Britain, with masterpieces by Monet, Manet, Degas, Renoir, Cézanne, van Gogh, and Gauguin. The gallery also has a superb collection of old-master paintings and drawings, including works by Rubens and Michelangelo; early-Italian paintings, ivories, and majolica; the Lee collection of old masters; and early-20th-century English, French, and British paintings.

The new galleries on the second floor display some 100 paintings and sculptures from the late 19th and 20th centuries, including an outstanding grouping of Fauve works (including a remarkable series of paintings and drawings by Kandinsky), and art by everybody from Matisse to Dufy. We come here at least once every season to revisit one work in particular: Manet's exquisite A Bar at the Folies-Bergère. Many of the paintings are displayed without glass, giving the gallery a more intimate feeling than most. This is but one of three major attractions at Somerset House.

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

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