230 Years of the NGP

The day of 5 February 2026 marks 230 years since the founding of the Society of Patriotic Friends of the Arts, a private association whose main goal was to open a picture gallery to the public and in the course of time to build up its own art collection. To this day, the artworks acquired by the Society of Patriotic Friends of the Arts form a core part of the NGP’s holdings, and many of them are on display in the exhibition 1796–1918: Art of the Long Century, the title of which itself contains a reference to this association. Within the framework of this larger exhibition, a mini-exhibition marking the anniversary will be opened, which briefly outlines the 230 years of development that has culminated in the current form of the NGP, established by a government decree in 1949. The mini-exhibition therefore also covers the existence of the second predecessor to the NGP, namely the Modern Gallery, established by Emperor Franz Josef I in 1902.

70 exhibits from all five collections of the NGP – the Collection of Prints and Drawings, the Collection of Asian Art, the Collection of Old Masters, the Collection of Modern Art, and the Collection of Art after 1945 – provide an insight into the gallery’s acquisition policy, and also present important figures who have made their mark in the history of the NGP as administrators of art collections or donors. In photographs and archival documents the mini-exhibition also presents the appearance of the gallery’s displays and prestigious exhibition projects.

In ten chapters ranging from the periods of 1796–1818 to 2003–2026, visitors will gain the opportunity to discover paintings by Renaissance and Baroque masters which the NGP acquired from the collections of the aristocratic families who were behind the founding of the Society of Patriotic Friends of the Arts, as well as paintings by Norbert Grund, Josef and Quido Manes, and Jakub Schikaneder, donated by distinguished personages such as Josef Hoser, Vojtěch Lanna, Josef Thomayer, Lepold Katz, and Emperor Franz Josef I, examples of acquisitions purchased in the second half of the 20th century, and the latest additions from the 21st century.

Venue: within the exhibition 1796–1918: Art of the Long Century, in the south wing, 4th floor of the Veletržní Palace

Curator: Veronika Hulíková