Director’s Top 5

Vincent van Gogh, Sunflowers 1888

Like many people, Vincent van Gogh was my entry into art, and to have one of his most famous and loved paintings hanging on the wall at the National Gallery in Canberra is a dream come true.

Carlo Crivelli, The Annunciation, with Saint Emidius 1486

This is a masterpiece of Italian Renaissance art. It is one of the great examples of linear perspective and decoration. I love the way Crivelli played pictorial games with his viewers, it’s not just stunningly beautiful, but fun.

Jacopo Tintoretto, The origin of the Milky Way c. 1575

Tintoretto brought painting to life. His use of colour, movement and drama set the standard for what was to come. The vibrancy of this painting feels as fresh today as it must have appeared to the people who saw it in Venice in the sixteenth century.

Johannes Vermeer, A young woman seated at a virginal c.1670–72

This is one of only 34 paintings by Vermeer that is known to exist – standing in front of one of his small, exquisite paintings always feels like an event of great importance.

JMW Turner Ulysses deriding Polyphemus — Homer’s Odyssey 1829

The English art critic John Ruskin described this painting as, ‘the central picture of Turner’s career’ – it was his breakthrough moment. You can see how he shifted the way he used colour and light in his landscapes and took the expressive direction that led to his visionary late works. It is amazing to see the moment in a great artist’s life when the penny drops!

Botticelli to van Gogh: Masterpieces from the National Gallery, London is on display at the National Gallery from 5 Mar – 14 Jun 2021.