Explore the Katja and Nicolai Tangen 20th Century Gallery

The painting offers a disorienting scene of partially constructed floor levels, jutting beams and extremes of light and dark. Auerbach’s use of red throughout the work gives fiery intensity to the painting, as if we are witness to an intense, almost hellish, vision. i Frank Auerbach (born 1931), Rebuilding the Empire Cinema, Leicester Square , 1962, Accepted by HM Government in Lieu of Inheritance Tax and allocated to The Samuel Courtauld Trust, The Courtauld Gallery in 2015. © Frank Auerbach, courtesy Marlborough Fine Art, London.

This beautifully restored gallery on the 3rd Floor stages carefully curated displays from The Courtauld’s collection of 20th century works of art.

From 20 July 2024, a display of 20th century British art will re-open. Highlights on display include the long-term loan of a remarkable painting by Leon Kossoff, Shell Building Site, 1962, and Halsetown, 1961, by Peter Lanyon.

The display also showcases the loan of a wonderful group of paintings by Patrick Heron, William Scott and Walter Sickert. These hang together with major paintings from The Courtauld’s collection such as Frank Auerbach’s monumental Rebuilding the Empire Cinema.

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Visit the Bloomsbury Room

Also on the 3rd Floor is a space dedicated to the work of the Bloomsbury Group, a collective of early 20th century avant-garde artists who ran an influential design company called the Omega Workshops. This room is decorated to evoke the Group’s aesthetic and offers a rich display of  paintings, drawings, furniture and ceramics.

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Collection, The Courtauld Gallery, What's On Highlights

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Open Daily, 10:00 - 18:00

You can now book your visit to see our much-loved collection of masterpieces ranging from the Middle Ages to the 20th century....

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