Editing National Gallery (section)

=== Growth under Eastlake and his successors ===
15th- and 16th-century Italian paintings were at the core of the National Gallery and for the first 30 years of its existence the trustees' independent acquisitions were mainly limited to works by [[High Renaissance]] masters. Their conservative tastes resulted in several missed opportunities and the management of the gallery later fell into complete disarray, with no acquisitions being made between 1847 and 1850.<ref>Robertson, David (2004). "Eastlake, Sir Charles Lock (1793–1865)", ''[[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]'', Oxford: Oxford University Press.</ref> A critical House of Commons report in 1851 called for the appointment of a director, whose authority would surpass that of the trustees. Many thought the position would go to the German art historian [[Gustav Friedrich Waagen]], whom the gallery had consulted on previous occasions about the lighting and display of the collections. However, the man preferred for the job by [[Queen Victoria]], [[Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha|Prince Albert]] and the Prime Minister, [[John Russell, 1st Earl Russell|Lord John Russell]], was the Keeper of Paintings at the gallery, Sir [[Charles Lock Eastlake]]. Eastlake, who was President of the [[Royal Academy]], played an essential role in the foundation of the [[Arundel Society]] and knew most of London's leading art experts.

[[File:Piero della Francesca - Battesimo di Cristo (National Gallery, London).jpg|thumb|right|upright|''[[The Baptism of Christ (Piero della Francesca)|The Baptism of Christ]]'' by [[Piero della Francesca]], one of Eastlake's purchases]]

The new director's taste was for the Northern and Early Italian Renaissance masters or "primitives", who had been neglected by the gallery's acquisitions policy but were slowly gaining recognition from connoisseurs. He made annual tours to the continent and to Italy in particular, seeking out appropriate paintings to buy for the gallery. In all, he bought 148 pictures abroad and 46 in Britain,<ref>''Grove Dictionary of Art'', Vol. 9, p. 683</ref> among the former such seminal works as [[Paolo Uccello]]'s ''[[The Battle of San Romano]]''. Eastlake also amassed a private art collection during this period, consisting of paintings that he knew did not interest the trustees. His ultimate aim, however, was for them to enter the National Gallery; this was duly arranged upon his death by his friend and successor as director, [[William Boxall]], and his widow Lady [[Elizabeth Eastlake]].

One of the most persistent criticisms of the National Gallery, other than of the perceived inadequacies of the building, has been of its conservation policy. The gallery's detractors have accused it of having had an over-zealous approach to restoration. The first cleaning operation at the National Gallery began in 1844 after Eastlake's appointment as Keeper, and was the subject of attacks in the press after the first three paintings to receive the treatment – a [[Peter Paul Rubens|Rubens]], a [[Aelbert Cuyp|Cuyp]] and a [[Diego Velázquez|Velázquez]] – were unveiled to the public in 1846.{{sfn|Bomford|1997|p=7}} The gallery's most virulent critic was J. Morris Moore, who wrote a series of letters to ''[[The Times]]'' under the pseudonym "Verax" savaging the institution's cleanings. While an 1853 Parliamentary [[Select committee (United Kingdom)|select committee]] set up to investigate the matter cleared the gallery of any wrongdoing, criticism of its methods has been erupting sporadically ever since from some in the art establishment.

[[File:Vignetta-Punch-Restauro.gif|thumb|left|upright=1.15|An 1847 ''[[Punch (magazine)|Punch]]'' cartoon by [[John Leech (caricaturist)|John Leech]] depicting the restoration controversy then ongoing]]

The gallery's lack of space remained acute in this period. In 1845, a large bequest of British paintings was made by [[Robert Vernon (art patron)|Robert Vernon]]; there was insufficient room in the Wilkins building so they were displayed first in Vernon's town house at No. 50 Pall Mall and then at [[Marlborough House]].<ref name="BakerHenry">Baker, Christopher and Henry, Tom (2001). "A short history of the National Gallery" in ''The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue''. London: National Gallery Company, pp. x–xix</ref> The gallery was even less well equipped for its next major bequest, as [[J. M. W. Turner]] was to bequeath the entire contents of his studio, excepting unfinished works, to the nation upon his death in 1851. The first 20 of these were displayed off-site in [[Marlborough House]] in 1856.{{sfn|Crookham|2012|p=56}} [[Ralph Nicholson Wornum]], the gallery's Keeper and Secretary, worked with [[John Ruskin]] to bring the bequest together. The stipulation in Turner's will that two of his paintings be displayed alongside works by [[Claude Lorrain|Claude]]{{sfn|Smith|2009|pp=72–73}} is still honoured as of 2024, but his bequest has never been adequately displayed in its entirety; today the works are divided between Trafalgar Square and the Clore Gallery, a small purpose-built extension to [[Tate Britain]] completed in 1985.

The third director, Sir [[Frederic William Burton]], laid the foundations of the collection of 18th-century art and made several outstanding purchases from English private collections. The acquisition in 1885 of two paintings from [[Blenheim Palace]], Raphael's ''[[Ansidei Madonna]]'' and van Dyck's ''[[Equestrian Portrait of Charles I]]'', with a record-setting grant of £87,500 from the [[HM Treasury|Treasury]], brought the gallery's "golden age of collecting" to an end, as its annual purchase grant was suspended for several years thereafter.{{sfn|Conlin|2006|pp=87–89}} When the gallery purchased [[Hans Holbein the Younger|Holbein]]'s ''[[The Ambassadors (Holbein)|Ambassadors]]'' from the [[William Pleydell-Bouverie, 5th Earl of Radnor|Earl of Radnor]] in 1890, it did so with the aid of private individuals for the first time in its history.{{sfn|Smith|2009|p=93}} In 1897, the formation of the National Gallery of British Art, known unofficially from early in its history as the [[Tate|Tate Gallery]], allowed some British works to be moved off-site, following the precedent set by the Vernon collection and the Turner Bequest. Works by artists born after 1790 were moved to the new gallery on [[Millbank]], which allowed [[William Hogarth|Hogarth]], Turner and [[John Constable|Constable]] to remain in Trafalgar Square.