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The National Gallery is an art gallery in London, located on the north side of Trafalgar Square It houses Western European paintings from 1250 to 1900 from the national art collection of Great Britain The collection of 2,300 paintings belongs to the British public, and entry to the main collection is free, although there are charges for entry to special exhibitions

Despite having been founded without an existing royal collection on which to build, the National Gallery has grown to be a collection of international renown since its foundation in 1824 It was shaped mainly by its early directors, including Sir Charles Lock Eastlake, and by private donations, which comprise two thirds of the collection Although small in comparison with other national art collections such as the Louvre, the National Gallery is notable for covering a broad art-historical scope with paintings of consistently high quality, making it possible to trace every major development in Western painting from the Early Renaissance to the Post-impressionists through its collection The Gallery's 19th-century origins have, however, resulted in particularly strong holdings of the Italian and Dutch schools, while historically it was slow on the uptake of modern art

The present building on Trafalgar Square is the third to house the National Gallery, and like its predecessors has often been deemed inadequate for its purpose The façade is by William Wilkins, and is the only part of his original building of 1832–8 that remains essentially unchanged, while the structure as a whole has been altered and expanded in a piecemeal manner throughout its history Notable additions to the building have been made by E M Barry and Robert Venturi The Gallery's current director is Charles Saumarez Smith

Address: Trafalgar Square
London   WC2N 5DN
Tel: +44 (0)20 7747 2885