National Gallery of Athens

The National Gallery, formally the Alexandros Soutsos Museum, holds the Greek national collection of painting and reopened in 2021 after a long rebuilding that roughly tripled the space. The strength is Greek art from the nineteenth century onward, the painters who worked out what a Greek national art would look like after independence, along with earlier post-Byzantine work and some western European painting.

History

The gallery began in 1878 as a small collection of 117 works shown at the Athens University; in 1896 the jurist and art lover Alexandros Soutzos left his collection and estate to the state to found an art museum, which opened in 1900. After an 8 year refurbishment the rebuilt gallery reopened on 24 March 2021, a day before the 200th anniversary of the Greek War of Independence (Wikipedia, National Gallery (Athens)).

What's there

• The nineteenth century Greek painters - the core of the collection.
• The post-Byzantine works - the earlier material including a Greco.
• The rebuilt galleries - the space reopened in 2021.
• The twentieth century rooms - modern Greek painting through to recent work.

When to go

April to June and September to October are the pleasant months. It is closed one day a week; check before going. Rainy days bring more people.

What to expect

The collection is national rather than international in scope and visitors expecting old masters will be disappointed. Labelling in English is uneven in places. It is some way from the main archaeological sites.

Nearby

The Byzantine Museum is nearby, and the National Garden is west.

Key facts