The Encounter

Drawings from Leonardo to Rembrandt

These drawings not only serve as extraordinary records of an artist’s skill, but have been selected for this exhibition because they appear to capture a moment of connection, an encounter between an artist and a sitter. Some of the people depicted in these portraits can be identified, such as the emperor’s chaplain, but many are the faces from the street – the nurse, the shoemaker, and the artist’s friends – whose likenesses were rarely captured in paintings. Highlights include 15 drawings lent by the Royal Collection, including eight portraits by Hans Holbein the Younger. ‘The Encounter’ brings together 48 portrait drawings by artists who worked throughout Europe including Albrecht Dürer, Anthony Van Dyck, Rembrandt van Rijn and Leonardo da Vinci. Find out more about ‘The Encounter: Drawings from Leonardo to Rembrandt’ on the National Portrait Gallery website.

Preview the exhibition below | See Apollo’s Picks of the Week here

Event website