National Gallery of Canada Information

When the National Gallery of Canada was established in 1880, its collection consisted of a single 19th-century landscape. Nearly 140 years later, the Gallery is home to more than 75,000 works of art, along with extensive library and archival holdings. Comprising works from antiquity to the present day, the Gallery has one of the finest collections of Canadian and Indigenous art in the world, as well as masterworks from numerous other artistic traditions. In addition to showcasing works of art, the Gallery preserves, studies and shares works in every conceivable medium, including photography, sculpture, painting, installation and the decorative arts. It does this through conventional means such as exhibitions and publications, as well as through its website, social media channels and other forms of international outreach. Housed in one of Canada’s most iconic public buildings, the National Gallery of Canada is among the world’s most respected art institutions. As part of its ongoing evolution, and in response to the changing expectations of museum-goers, the Gallery recently renewed its entire narrative on Canadian and Indigenous art, sharing a new and compelling story of artistic production in this country, from time immemorial to the present day.