For younger ages and families

Tips for getting started...

Explore: Bursting with information, each resource kicks off with 10 interesting facts about the artwork but you don’t have to become an expert on everything! Just jump straight in and see what grabs your attention.

Just look: When you are presented with an artwork you’ve never seen before, it’s easy to feel you need to learn all there is about it – but there’s a lot to be gained from simply looking at it! Give it a go for 10 minutes.

There’s no right answer! Facts have their place, but so do feelings, and one of the most valuable things about art is it gives us space to play, explore, and feel. Anything you think about the artwork, and the words you use to talk about it, it’s all good.

Look out for the CLOCK: The clock icons indicate 10-minute activities which are great for young children or if you’re just stuck for time and have few materials to hand.

Let's start

The earliest work by a woman in the Collection

Joan Carlile’s Portrait of a Lady wearing an Oyster Satin Dress c.1650 is the earliest work by a woman in the Collection. Discover the story of the portrait and its artist. Create a miniature or be a bowerbird…

painting of a young woman in a satin dress

Download ArtSpark resource on Joan Carlile

The oldest work in the Collection

The oldest work in the Collection is King Henry VIII c.1527-50, a painting by an Unknown Anglo-Flemish Artist. What can self-portraits tell us? What links Henry VIII to Stormzy?

painting of a man, head turned to the left, in Tudor costume

Download ArtSpark resource on Henry VIII

The first video work bought for the Collection

What is the story behind Gillian Wearing’s 1994 video work Dancing in Peckham? Make some moves of your own, or try making your own film.

Six video stills showing a woman dancing in a shopping centre

Gillian Wearing, Dancing in Peckham, 1994, video © Gillian Wearing courtesy Maureen Paley, London

Download ArtSpark resource on Gillian Wearing

The earliest sculpture by a Black British artist

Male Standing Figure – The Priest, 1939, is by Black British artist, Ronald Moody. Hear about this sculpture’s amazing journey around the world. Have a go at making a Storm Creature or a Mythical Bird.

Wooden sculpture of a male figure

Ronald Moody, Male Standing Figure – The Priest, 1939 wood figurine © Estate of the Artist

Download ArtSpark resource on Ronald Moody