The Walker Art Gallery

The Walker Art Gallery has housed Liverpool’s world-class art collection for over 130 years and includes everything from Renaissance masterpieces to big names of the 20th century. Some of the world’s most famous painters are represented here: Rubens, Rembrandt, Turner, Monet, Degas, Rossetti and Hockney.

Currently (spring 2023) the Walker Art Gallery is undergoing a major refurbishment and galleries one to four are closed to the public. They house all Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque paintings as well as the collection of 17th century Dutch and Flemish art)

However you can still see full-length portraits by Gainsborough and Reynolds in the 18th Century European Art Gallery, discover radical Pre-Raphaelite works by Millais and Rossetti, explore famous Victorian narrative paintings like And When Did You Last See Our Father?, enjoy Victorian high art with its classical inspirations, study landscapes and scenes from daily life in the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Gallery, and get up close to intimate works by Freud in the British Art from 1880 – 1950 Gallery. Enough to be going on with.

The sculpture collection includes examples of neo-classicism in marble, early modernist pieces by Rodin, and work from mid-20th century heavyweights like Hepworth, Moore and Epstein.

Decorative art pieces include ceramics, jewellery, glassware, furniture and textiles with everything from flapper dresses to medieval pottery on display.

Families with kids will appreciate the changing exhibitions on popular culture, a dedicated children’s gallery and a digital trail packed with activities.

With both Tate Liverpool and the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool definitely punches above its weight with the quality of its art collection.