About

The Laing Art Gallery was born from an act of generosity. In 1900, Alexander Laing (1828–1905), a successful Newcastle wine and spirit merchant, offered to build a gallery ‘for the free use and enjoyment of the public in perpetuity’. Designed by the architects Cackett & Burns Dick in Baroque style with Art Nouveau flourishes, the gallery opened in 1904 to huge crowds. On that day, Laing was awarded the Freedom of the City. He died just a year later, but his gift has shaped Newcastle’s cultural life ever since. 

Unlike most galleries, the Laing opened without a collection. Laing was not himself an art collector, but he trusted that the people of Newcastle would fill the space. Local generosity soon poured in: industrialists, philanthropists, and artists made donations, and acquisitions were supported by national funds. The result is a collection now recognised by Arts Council England as one of national importance. 

Pre-Raphaelite Masterpieces

Two of the gallery’s most famous works are jewels of Pre-Raphaelite art.

• Isabella and the Pot of Basil by William Holman Hunt, a lush and intensely detailed narrative painting that explores love, grief and obsession. 
• Laus Veneris by Edward Burne-Jones, a shimmering vision of myth and medieval romance, widely considered his greatest achievement. 

Epic Landscape 

Landscape subjects are well represented in the Laing’s paintings collection.

• There are important 18th century examples by Thomas Gainsborough and Richard Wilson. 
• The Laing holds the world's largest collection of works by the North East born artist John Martin, whose paintings spectacularly combine landscape and narrative. 
• 20th century examples include a David Bomberg view of Devon, and recent acquisitions include an abstract landscape by contemporary painter Vicken Parsons.

Women Artists Across Centuries 

The collection has a long-standing strength in works by women. Examples include:

• Laura Knight, a leading figure of the Newlyn School, whose works depict everyday life with freshness and vitality. 
• Gillian Ayres, an abstract painter represented in the collection by the vibrant canvas Papua. 
• Laura Lancaster, a contemporary North East artist, whose work reuses found photographs to explore memory and identity. 
• Marlene Dumas, one of today’s most significant painters, whose contribution to the Laing brings an international female voice into the collection. 

Global Connections 

While the Laing’s core collection is rooted in British art, it also holds important works by international artists that broaden the conversation.

• Paul Gaugin's Shepherdess, donated in 1945, is one of the gallery’s most famous masterpieces, linking Newcastle to the story of French Post-Impressionism. 
• R.B. Kitaj, an American artist of Jewish heritage whose vibrant paintings bridge European modernism and American pop culture. 
• Japanese prints, bronzes, and ivories — donated in 1919 — which reflect the fascination with and respect for Asian craft and aesthetics that influenced so many Western artists. 

Beyond Painting 

The Laing's outstanding watercolour collection includes works by JMW Turner, Thomas Girtin, Samuel Palemer, Eric Ravilious, Ethel Walker and Nerys Johnson. Its small sculpture collection features Henry Moore, while the large print collection is anchored by the extraordinary wood engravings of Newcastle’s own . It also embraces modern printmakers such as Paulo Rego, Allen Jones, Eduardo Paolozzi, Elisabeth Frink, and David Hockney. In 2017, the renowned photographer Chris Killip gifted the gallery a set of his photographs, ‘The Last Ships’, which document shipbuilding on the Tyne during the 1970s. 

The decorative arts collection are a reminder of the North East's role as a centre of craftsmanship and industry, with exquisite Beilby enamelled glass, Sowerby pressed glass and experimental art glass, and Newcastle silver alongside local ceramics by important potteries such as Maling. 

Northern Spirit: Art of the Region 

Northern Spirit gallery celebrates the art of the North East over three centuries. It features internationally important art such as John Martin’s vast apocalyptic canvas, The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Artists who worked locally and made a national and international contribution, such as Thomas Bewick and Victor Pasmore, are displayed alongside beloved local figures like Ralph Hedley. It also showcases the artistry of the region’s glass, silver, and ceramics industries, exploring how creativity here has always been rooted in community, labour, and place. 

Over time, the Laing has evolved. A striking new entrance was added in 1996, a major refurbishment restored its Edwardian splendour in 2004, and in 2010 the Northern Spirit gallery opened. Today the Laing combines historic collections with ambitious exhibitions, commissions, and learning programmes. 

From Pre-Raphaelite icons to Elizabeth Blackadder’s lyrical watercolours, from John Martin’s biblical dramas to Chris Killip’s photographs of lost industry, the Laing brings together art that speaks both to local identity and to universal experience. Rooted in the creativity and resilience of North East communities, the gallery also connects to wider national and international conversations, welcoming visitors from near and far. More than a place to view fine art, the Laing is a space where histories, cultures, and people meet — continuing Alexander Laing’s vision of a gallery for everyone, and for the world.