Sunday, January 20, 2013

Scotland Sundays: National Portrait Gallery


Something that's been on my to do list for far too long has been to visit the recently reopened National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh.  It was closed for the last two years as it underwent an extensive refurbishment.


It's a gothic style building made from red sandstone.  It's absolutely stunning and that's just the outside! The National Portrait Gallery only displays paintings of (but not necessarily by) Scots.


For our outing, I wore my 1933 'Art Deco Love' dress and jacket.  It's from a Butterick 'starred' pattern and was the outfit a very young Katherine Hepburn wore in the movie 'Christopher Strong'. The movie is very difficult to find and I still haven't seen it.  The jacket on this outfit has the most amazing sleeves and cut--very art deco.


The inside of the gallery is equally stunning.  The entrance leads onto the 'Great Hall', where the ceilings and walls are all handpainted showing Scotland's heros and inventors.  The walls are also covered with some of the historical moments in Scottish history including the key battles of Bannockburn and that of Stirling Bridge.  I could spend hours in the Great Hall without even seeing the rest of the gallery!


We split our time between just a couple of galleries and the beautiful library.  Photography is not allowed past the Great Hall but you can see some of the portraits on the National Portrait Gallery website.  We visited the 'Blazing with Crimson: Tartan Portraits' and the 'Out of the Shadow: Women of Nineteenth Century Scotland' exhibits.  Like many of the national museums in Scotland, it's completely free.  We definitely plan to visit many more times!


Hope you are having a lovely Sunday!
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6 comments

  1. I keep meaning to go there myself too!
    Also, YOU LOOK STUNNINGLY BEAUTIFUL!  truly just serene.

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  2. Beautiful building!  And your outfit is definitely well-assorted! :)

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  3. oranges_and_applesJanuary 20, 2013 9:47 PM

    I love the jacket!

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  4. We went there on a former Scotland trip and I remember there being an exhibit of portraits made out of teeny pictures of other things from Scotland. Amazing.

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  5. What a gorgeous building!  Sounds like a fascinating way to spend a day, delving into Scottish history.  :-)

    (Also, that outfit is one of my all-time favourite ones you've made.  Love it!)

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  6. What a beautiful place!! And you looking so beautiful while visiting! That jacket is one of my favorites!

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I read each and every comment--thank you so much!

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