Masterpiece arrives in South Tyneside as part of the National Gallery Masterpiece Tour.
Pierre Mignard’s masterpiece painting The Marquise de Seignelay (1691), arrives in South Tyneside as part of the National Gallery Masterpiece Tour.
From now until Saturday 7 November 2026, Pierre Mignard’s The Marquise de Seignelay (1691), is on display at South Shields Museum & Art Gallery, offering visitors a rare opportunity to experience the celebrated artist’s work as part of the National Gallery Masterpiece Tour.
The artwork on loan forms part of the National Gallery's Masterpiece Tour 2025–27, a nationwide partnership bringing works from the national collection to audiences across the UK. South Shields Museum & Art Gallery is one of just five partner venues selected to display a masterpiece, creating new opportunities for local audiences to experience internationally significant works of art close to home. The museum previously hosted a Claude Monet painting from January – March 2026, as part of the Masterpiece Tour.
The exhibition, named Mignard: The Power of Posing, explores the power of portraiture and how artists use pose, clothing, expression and setting to communicate identity, status and personality. The exhibition invites visitors to look beyond the surface of a portrait and discover the stories hidden behind an artwork. Every gesture, glance and carefully chosen accessory offers clues about the sitter's life, ambitions and the image they wish to portray.
Pierre Mignard’s masterpiece is supported by a display of a variety of portrait paintings from the North East Museums’ collections. Visitors are encouraged to spend time with each portrait, meeting the gaze of its subject and looking closely at the details that reveal character and personality. By exploring the choices made by both artist and sitter, the exhibition asks the question to its visitors, what story would their portrait tell?
Pierre Mignard was born in Troyes, a town on the River Seine in north-eastern France. He trained as an artist, initially under the painter Jean Boucher of Bourges. To develop his skills Mignard moved to Rome in 1635 where he spent more than 20 years painting while studying the works of the great Italian artists. He became well-known for his religious paintings and portraits, and gained the affectionate nickname ‘Mignard le Romain’ (‘Mignard the Roman’). He returned to France, living in Paris, and painted numerous portraits of members of the French court. Near the end of his career, he became First Painter to the King, Louis XIV.
Keith Merrin, Director of North East Museums, said: "We are delighted to welcome another masterpiece into South Shields Museum & Art Gallery as part of the National Gallery Masterpiece Tour. This partnership gives people across the North East the opportunity to experience an internationally significant work of art on their doorstep."
Alongside the exhibition, visitors can discover a collection of original poetry inspired by The Marquise de Seignelay (1691). The works were created by young people from the New Writing North Writers' Group as part of a sensory writing competition celebrating the arrival of the masterpiece. The competition attracted 23 entries, which were judged by a panel of representatives from North East Museums, the National Gallery, Arts Council England and Royal Holloway, University of London. The winning piece has been selected to accompany the painting in the exhibition space, while every submission has been brought together in a booklet and accompanying audio recording, which visitors can read and listen to in the gallery.
The exhibition also features an interactive Selfie Station, inviting visitors to explore a wardrobe of costumes and accessories and transform themselves into a living masterpiece.
Councillor Elliott Curry, Lead Member for Culture, Leisure, Tourism and Voluntary Sector at South Tyneside Council, said: "We're proud that South Shields Museum & Art Gallery continues to bring world-class art to South Tyneside. Having a National Gallery masterpiece on display gives local people and visitors a unique opportunity to experience an extraordinary piece of art without travelling to London.
"This exhibition is another great example of how culture can inspire, educate and enrich our communities, and I would encourage people of all ages to come along and see it for themselves."
Dr Gabriele Finaldi, Director of The National Gallery, said: “The National Gallery’s collection belongs to all of us. It is part of our duty and our honour to look after these paintings and to bring them to where people are, not just expect them to come to us. Partnering on touring exhibitions does so much more than bring beloved paintings from the collection to other places in the UK - it supports the whole country's cultural ecosystem, connects people with paintings that belong to us all, and allows us to learn and expand our own practices and interpretations through the creativity of our partner organisations and their communities. That over one million people have visited these exhibitions in the last decade proves the desire to engage with our collection is growing, and we look forward to welcoming the next million visitors across the UK.”
Since its inception in 2014, The National Gallery Masterpiece Tour has reached 463,217 people across the UK. The National Touring programme, including The National Gallery Masterpiece Tour and other travelling exhibitions, has now reached 1,529,822 people since 2014.
As part of The National Gallery’s ongoing commitment to sharing their collection, this exhibition partnership offers four UK museums, galleries and art centres outside of London, the opportunity to work with the National Gallery for three years and display three major artworks from the collection.
Visitors can view the exhibition, Mignard: The Power of Posing, at South Shields Museum & Art Gallery from Saturday 29 August – Saturday 7 November 2026. Entry is free, although donations are encouraged. There is no need to pre-book.
