Events and exhibitions calendar

Find out what's on in our current and upcoming exhibitions, displays, events, programmes, workshops and more.

Exhibitions (6)

The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure

22 February - 19 May 2024
Floor 0
£16.00 / £18.00 with donation

Explore the Black figure in Western art history with contemporary artists from the African diaspora, curated by Ekow Eshun

Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In

21 March - 16 June 2024

£8.50 / £9.50 with donation

Experience the creative and imaginative portraiture of influential photographers Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron, spanning over a century

Six Lives

20 June - 8 September 2024

Tickets not yet on sale

Historic paintings by Hans Holbein and contemporary photography by Hiroshi Sugimoto meet in our first exhibition of historic portraiture since reopening

Herbert Smith Freehills Portrait Award 2024

11 July - 27 October 2024

Free to visit

The Herbert Smith Freehills Portrait Award returns to the National Portrait Gallery, showcasing the very best in contemporary portraiture

Francis Bacon Portraits

10 October 2024 - 19 January 2025

Tickets not yet on sale

Featuring works from the 1950s onwards, this exhibition will explore Francis Bacon’s deep connection to portraiture

Taylor Wessing Photo Portrait Prize 2024

14 November 2024 - 16 February 2025

Tickets not yet on sale

Showcasing the work of talented young photographers, gifted amateurs and established professionals, the Prize features the very best of contemporary photography

Events (34)

Daily highlights tours

Daytime, Gallery tours

Various dates, next at Tue, 19 March 2024, 11.00-11.45
Meet on Floor 3, Room 18
Free (drop in – spaces limited) 

Free highlights tour exploring our Collection and building every day at 11.00 and 15.00

Portrait of the day talks: March

Daytime, Gallery tours

Various dates, next at Tue, 19 March 2024, 12.30-13.00
Meet on Floor 0, historic stairs landing
Free (drop in – spaces limited)

A talk on a chosen portrait in the Gallery's Collection, delivered every day at 12.30 and 14.00

Little Explorers

Family, Daytime, Workshop

Various dates, next at Wed, 20 March 2024, 11.00-12.00
Learning Centre Floor -2, Photography Studio
Free, booking required

Join our free monthly session for Under 5s. Explore the gallery and the collection with your family through stories, songs and making activities.

Members’ afternoon preview - Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In

Member, Daytime

Wed, 20 March 2024, 14.00-17.00
Exhibition space
Free for Members

Join us for an extended in person Members’ Afternoon preview of the exhibition Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In.

LGBTQ+ highlights tour

Daytime, Gallery tours

Various dates, next at Fri, 22 March 2024, 15.00-15.45
Meet on Floor 3, Room 18
Free (drop in – spaces limited) 

Discover key LGBTQ+ figures from the Gallery's Collection

Members’ event: evening life drawing

Member, Evening, Workshop

Fri, 22 March 2024, 18.00-20.00
Art Studio
£50

Join our members-only life drawing class, led by a figurative artist to hone your technical drawing skills in a range of media.

Curator's introduction - Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream In

Adult, Evening, Online, Talks and conversations

Fri, 22 March 2024, 19.00-20.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre / Online livestream
Onsite £15 (£12 Members / concessions)
Online £8 (£6 Members / concessions)

Join curator Magda Keaney as she discusses themes explored by Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron.
Close-up ohotograph of hands signing BSL

BSL tour: The Time is Always Now

Adult, Accessible events, Evening, Gallery tours

Fri, 22 March 2024, 19.30-20.30
Main Entrance, Ross Place
Free (booking required)

Join exhibiting artist Kimathi Donkor for a free BSL interpreted Gallery talk in The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure.

Digital photography workshop: BLUR

Adult, Daytime, Workshop

Sat, 23 March 2024, 11.00-17.00
The Law Photography Studio
£125 (£100 Members / concessions)

Explore experimenting and innovating through the medium of photography in this workshop led by a leading contemporary photographer.

Poetry performance: Salena Godden

Adult, Daytime, Music and performance

Sat, 23 March 2024, 14.00-14.30
In Gallery, Room 18
£5 (£4 Members / concessions)

Join Salena Godden for a poetry performance in the Galleries, drawing on magical realism and the notion of a dream space.

Trailblazers Black history tour

Daytime, Gallery tours

Various dates, next at Sat, 23 March 2024, 15.00-15.45
Meet on Floor 3, Room 18
Free (drop in – spaces limited) 

Discover key Black figures from the Gallery's Collection

Descriptive tour: The Time is Always Now

Adult, Accessible events, Daytime, Gallery tours

Tue, 26 March 2024, 14.30-16.00
In Gallery (room TBC) and Learning Centre
Free (booking required)

Join our free monthly audio described tours for visitors who are blind or partially sighted.

Youth Late

Young people, Evening

Various dates, next at Thu, 28 March 2024, 19.00-21.00
Across Galleries
Free (booking required)

Join us for our next Youth Late exclusively for 18 to 25 year-olds, curated and hosted by our Young Producers

Spring Family Festival week 1

Family, Daytime, Workshop

4 - 5 April 2024, 11.00-16.00
Learning Centre
Free

Jump into spring with creative activities for all the family, inspired by nature and the season

Drop-in drawing

Adult, Evening, Workshop

Fri, 5 April 2024, 18.00-20.00
In Gallery
Free

Led by an artist, create your own work in the Gallery and be inspired by the world’s largest collection of portraits.

Trespassing: Art and Black belonging in a colonial landscape

Adult, Evening, Online, Talks and conversations

Fri, 5 April 2024, 19.00-20.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre / Online livestream
Onsite: £10 (£8 Members / concessions)
Online £8 (£6 Members / concessions)

Join Niellah Arboine for a conversation on the role of artistic practice to create and assert a new kind of belonging in Britain’s colonial landscape

PORTfolio workshop

Young people, Daytime, Workshop

Sat, 6 April 2024, 11.00-16.00
Learning Centre
Free (booking required)

Sharpen your portraiture skills through drawing and painting workshops for young people aged 16-21

PORTfolio reviews

Young people, Daytime, Workshop

Sun, 7 April 2024, 14.00-17.30
Learning Centre
Free (booking required)

Speed-portfolio review sessions for young people aged 16-21, offering advice and feedback with an inspiring group of artists, curators and artist…

Spring Family Festival week 2

Family, Daytime, Workshop

11 - 12 April 2024, 11.00-16.00
Learning Centre
Free

Jump into spring with creative activities for all the family, inspired by nature and the season

POSTPONED: ‘Photography is a place for the viewer to dream in’: What can photography do?

Adult, Daytime, Talks and conversations

Thu, 11 April 2024, 13.00-14.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)

Join us for a lecture looking at the ways in which photography is used to transport a viewer beyond reality and into a dream space.

Get loud: a dominoes night at the National Portrait Gallery

Adult, Evening, Workshop

Fri, 12 April 2024, 18.00-20.00
In Gallery
Free

Join us for a pop-up dominoes tournament in our gallery space after hours, celebrating the kinship and connection fostered by the game

Digital photography workshop: gesture, pose, staging and props

Adult, Daytime, Workshop

Sat, 13 April 2024, 11.00-17.00
The Law Photography Studio
£125 (£100 Members / concessions)

Use digital photography to consider pose and gesture in your own work in this one-day workshop led by contemporary photographer Lydia Goldblatt

Members’ early morning view - The Time is Always Now and Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron

Member, Daytime

Mon, 15 April 2024, 08.30-10.00
Exhibition space
Free for Members

Join us for a Members' Early Morning View of The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure and Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron:…

Members’ event: frame conservation studio tour and gilding workshop

Member, Evening, Workshop

Fri, 19 April 2024, 18.00-20.00
The Law Photography Studio
£80

Join Stuart Ager for an intimate evening talk and workshop revealing the processes behind frame conservation and the application of gold-leaf.
Drop-in drawing session participants sketching in the Gallery.

Drop-in drawing

Adult, Evening, Workshop

Fri, 19 April 2024, 18.00-20.00
In Gallery
Free

Led by an artist, create your own work in the Gallery and be inspired by the world’s largest collection of portraits.

Creating realistic portraits using ballpoint pen

Adult, Daytime, Workshop

20 - 21 April 2024, 11.00-17.00
The Art Studio
£250 (£200 Members / concessions)

Create your own ballpoint pen portraits of historical figures of African descent during this two-day workshop led by artist Habib Hajallie

Sensory tour: the Collection

Adult, Accessible events, Daytime, Gallery tours

Mon, 22 April 2024, 12.00-12.45
In Gallery room TBC
Free (booking required)

Our sensory tours invite visitors with complex support needs and their carers to experience the Collection in imaginative ways.

Descriptive tour: the Collection

Adult, Accessible events, Daytime, Gallery tours

Various dates, next at Tue, 23 April 2024, 14.30-16.00
In Gallery
Free (booking required)

Join our free monthly audio described tours for visitors who are blind or partially sighted.

Women’s representation and the female gaze

Adult, Daytime, Talks and conversations

Thu, 25 April 2024, 13.00-14.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)

Join us as we explore the representation of women in the arts throughout history and what it means to be a woman working in the arts today.
Colour photo of a man wearing a dark suit standing in a room with a green carpet and furniture; behind him two large portraits hang on the wall

Ekow Eshun in Conversation with Dorothy Price

Adult, Evening, Online, Talks and conversations

Fri, 3 May 2024, 19.00-20.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre / Online livestream
Onsite £15 (£12 Members / concessions)
Online £8 (£6 Members / concessions)

Join Ekow Eshun, curator of The Time is Always Now: Artists Reframe the Black Figure, in conversation with Dorothy Price, curator of the Royal Academy’s…

Members’ Late - The Time is Always Now and Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron

Member, Evening

Tue, 7 May 2024, 18.30-20.30
Exhibition spaces
Booking opens 25 March 2024

Join us for a Members’ Late to view The Time is Always Now and Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron

Screening of 'Super Sam' and In Conversation with director Sandi Hudson-Francis

Adult, Evening, Film screening

Fri, 10 May 2024, 18.00-20.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)

Screening of Super Sam, followed by an In Conversation with director Sandi Hudson-Francis

Weekend workshop: Introduction to figurative painting

Adult, Daytime, Workshop

11 - 12 May 2024, 11.00-17.00
The Art Studio
£250 (£200 Members / concessions)

Join visual artist Shannon Bono to learn the basics of figurative painting in this two-day workshop

Going Pro

Young people, Daytime, Workshop

29 - 31 May 2024, 10.30-16.00
Learning Centre
Free

Aged 15-18 and interested in finding out more about creative careers? Join us for a three-day insights programme offering behind-the-scenes access to…

Displays (2)

Windrush: Portraits of a Pioneering Generation

9 October 2023 - 1 April 2024
Room 14, Floor 3
Free

A display of ten portraits, highlighting the experiences of people who have made positive contributions to the United Kingdom.

Creative Connections: Cornwall and Southampton

26 February - 12 April 2024
Studio Gallery, Floor -2
Free

This display brings together work from projects with Newlyn Art Gallery & The Exchange (Penzance) and Southampton City Art Gallery

National and International Programme (0)

There are currently no National and International Programme matching this filter.