Joanna Moorhead on the new Sainsbury Wing at the National Gallery, reopening after a two- and-a-half-year refurbishment, and now resembling more closely than ever an early Renaissance church in Florence, Siena or Mantua.
Since 2023 the Sainsbury Wing has been closed for a major overhaul, and the visitors arriving today for its reopening will discover that the building’s church-like inspiration is more keenly played out than ever, and never more so than in the long gallery at the top of the sweeping staircase, where the altarpiece, predella and crucifix have been positioned exactly as they would have been in an Italian Renaissance church. From a viewer point of view, it’s arguably even better than it would be in a church for which the works were intended, in that both the lighting and the proximity allow far more engagement with the intricate, detailed, colourful pieces.
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