John Baker’s Blog

This exhibition at The National Gallery brings out some old favourites as well as introducing us to some lesser known pictures.

Briefly, there are groupings of Monets, Pissaros, Degas’, Renoirs, Van Goghs and Cezannes, mostly taken from the gallery’s own collection, but some placed alongside loans from elsewhere.

The exhibition is portrayed broadly chronologically and there are special moments when one witnesses the dramatic and sometimes inevitable changes from one period to another. I was struck by the transition from Van Gogh to Cezanne, when Picasso’s ‘discovery’ of cubism was already in evidence.

The period covered takes in Impressionism, Post-Impressionism and the early stages of Modernism. These are paintings I have not seen for some time, my main interest in recent years being focussed on the Expressionist period and contemporary artists.

Manet to Picasso continues until the 20th May. It is a free exhibition and well worth a visit.

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