The National Gallery in London acquires a masterpiece by Angelica Kauffmann

The National Gallery in London is expanding its collections with a major donation that brings three works by three leading figures in 18th- and 19th-centurySwiss art to the museum’s galleries. The bequest from collectors Richard and Luba Barrett includes a painting by Angelica Kauffmann, a portrait by Ferdinand Hodler (the first portrait by Hodler to enter the London museum), and a landscape by Alexandre Calame, all of which will be on public display starting July 2, 2026. The standout piece, however, is the painting by Angelica Kauffmann ( Chur, 1741 – Rome, 1807), *Achilles Discovered Among the Daughters of Lycomedes*: it is, in fact, the artist’s first historical painting to enter a national collection in the United Kingdom and, at the same time, the first work by the painter to become part of the National Gallery’s current collection.

The donation comes, as mentioned, from Richard and Luba Barrett, Dallas-based collectors who over the years have built one of the most important private collections dedicated to Swiss art, focusing their interest on works spanning the 15th to the early 20th centuries. Their gesture now enables the London museum to significantly enrich its representation of three key figures in the history of European art.

The addition of Angelica Kauffmann’s painting is also particularly significant from a historical perspective. A work by the artist had in fact already entered the National Gallery in 1835 through a bequest, but was later transferred to the National Gallery of British Art in Millbank, an institution that later became Tate Britain. That painting was subsequently loaned to Plymouth Guildhall, where it is believed to have been destroyed during the bombing of the city in the 1941 Blitz. *Achilles Discovered Among the Daughters of Lycomedes* thus marks Angelica Kauffmann’s first return to the collections of the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square following that loss.

The work was painted between 1777 and 1778, during the height of the artist’s success in Europe. It is an unusual, large-scale preparatory version—fully finished—intended for the creation of the final painting commissioned by Catherine the Great and now housed at the Museum of Scientific Research of the Russian Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg.

The subject is drawn from Greek mythology and depicts one of the most famous episodes in the life of the hero Achilles. According to the prophecy, the hero was destined to die during the Trojan War, and to spare him from this foretold fate, his mother Thetis decided to disguise him as a young girl and entrust him to the court of King Lycomedes, where he was presented as one of Achilles’ sisters. The deception is exposed, however, when Odysseus and Diomedes arrive at the court bearing gifts intended for the young women, including clothing, jewelry, and… weapons—deliberately included among items considered purely feminine precisely to unmask the young Achilles. Diomedes’ daughters, therefore, show interest in the precious objects, while Achilles unwittingly reveals his identity by taking up arms and revealing his nature as a warrior.

The painting marks one of the high points of Angelica Kauffmann’s international career. Before settling in Rome, where she would create this work, the artist had in fact enjoyed great success in London, where in 1768 she had become one of only two women elected as founding members of the Royal Academy of Arts—an exceptional honor for a female painter in the 18th century.

Sir Gabriele Finaldi, director of the National Gallery, stated: “We are very grateful to Richard and Luba Barrett for this generous donation of three extraordinary paintings by Swiss artists of the 18th and 19th centuries. In addition to a striking portrait by Hodler and a refined landscape by Calame, we have received the first work by Angelica Kauffmann to become part of the National Gallery’s current collection.” The three works acquired through the donation from the Barrett Collection are on view starting July 2, 2026. Angelica Kauffmann’s *Achilles Discovered Among the Daughters of Lycomedes* is on view in Gallery 37, Ferdinand Hodler’s *Portrait of Louis Montchal* in Gallery 44, and Alexandre Calame’s *Four Large Trees* in Gallery 39.

The National Gallery in London acquires a masterpiece by Angelica Kauffmann

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.