Tate Britain is the home of British art from 1500 to the present day. This
luxury guide to the highlights of the collection provides an essential
introduction to the extraordinary development of British art over the
centuries, telling the story of the collection and presenting a selection of
the stunning works on display.
British art is also notable for genres unique to itself: group portraits,
known as 'conversation pieces', focusing on social relations between
friends, family and allies; themes from British literature, particularly
Shakespeare, Milton and Tennyson (rather than classical mythology);
and topical subjects in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth
centuries reflecting the wars with France and the scientific innovations
of the Industrial Revolution. Hogarth ushered in an art of social
engagement, as did the artists associated with the Young British Art
movement more recently.
The art from Britain in Tate's collection is rich with imaginative invention
and reinvention and this panoramic book celebrates this aesthetic
ingenuity as an ongoing story, revealing how 500 years of art can act
as a fascinating lens through which to deepen our understanding of
ourselves and society, past and present, in both Britain and in the rest
of the world.
This generous companion to the Tate collection provides a sumptuous
compendium of the rich history of British art, designed to offer readers
an overview of the collection and demonstrate the remarkable range of
art in the collection.