The National Art Gallery of Athens, located within walking distance from Syntagma Square and just opposite the Athens Hilton Hotel, holds a position of paramount importance in the history of Greek art. Its rich heritage dates back to 1900 when it was founded with the support of Alexandros Soutsos, a lawyer and art enthusiast. In honor of its benevolent donor, the gallery is often referred to as the Museum of Alexandros Soutsos.
Soutsos’s legacy to the Greek State consisted of an extensive art collection, totaling 107 remarkable pieces. Consequently, a gallery was established to showcase these treasures. In its early years, the National Gallery found a home in various locations, including the Polytechnic School of Athens until 1939. In 1976, the present-day building on Vassileos Constantinou Avenue was constructed, featuring modern architectural lines, and remains the gallery’s residence to this day. Subsequent donations from Greek entrepreneurs and foreign artists have expanded the gallery’s collection to approximately 15,000 works of art.
The permanent exhibition of the National Gallery boasts an array of masterpieces from the Renaissance period, such as El Greco’s “The Concert of the Angels,” Jacob Jordaens’s “The Adoration of the Shepherds,” Luca Giordano’s “Esther and Ahasuerus,” and Giovanni Battista Tiepolo’s “Eliezer and Rebecca,” to name a few. The collection also includes works by European painters from the 17th to the 20th century, featuring prominent artists like Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Eugene Delacroix, Peter Paul Rubens, Jacques Linard, and Auguste Rodin, among others.
A substantial portion of the National Gallery is dedicated to Greek artists, spanning from 19th-century luminaries associated with the Munich School, such as Georges Jakovides, Nikiforos Lytras, and Nikolaos Gyzis, to modern 20th-century icons like Nikos Hatzikyriakos-Gikas, Yannis Tsarouchis, Yannis Moralis, Spyros Vassiliou, Nikos Eggonopoulos, Dimitris Mytaras, and Theofilos Hatzimichail.
Additionally, the National Gallery includes the National Sculpture Gallery, located in the scenic surroundings of Goudi Athens. Over the years, the National Gallery has expanded its influence, with departments opening in Nafplion, Corfu, Aegina, and Sparta, contributing to the rich tapestry of Greek art and culture.
