TATE BRITAIN

The National Gallery had only been in existence for a few years when opinion began to gather behind the view that there should be a gallery that displayed only British art. The idea took several decades to come to fruition. The first substantive step towards its achievement was the Chantrey Bequest (1877). This was set up by the sculptor Sir Francis Chantrey. He bequeathed his fortune so that ultimately it entered the care of the Royal Academy of Arts. The institution was charged with using it to purchase works of art that had been created in Britain.

The sugar refining magnate Sir Henry Tate had a gallery at his London house Park Hill in Streatham. In about 1890 he proposed to the National Gallery that it should receive his collection upon his death. The Gallery replied that it did not want it as a whole but that it was prepared to take selected works from it. The businessman was unhappy with this response. Therefore, he approached the Chancellor of the Exchequer G.J. Goschen and offered all of his whole collection and a gallery in which to house it if the government would provide the land. The site of the former Millbank Penitentiary was furnished.

Initially, The Tate Gallery (1897) operated under the supervision of the National Gallery. Works that were acquired by the Bequest were housed in The Tate. In 1919 the National s British collection was moved to Millbank, although the former retained some of the best Turners and Constables.

In 1946 Rothenstein had hired (Sir) Norman Reid (1915-2007) in 1946, because Reid had served as a major during the war and so would know how to look after the chaps. At the time, the Tate s staff had consisted of Rothernstein, Reid, two secretaries, and a paymaster. Throughout his curating career, Reid continued to paint in his own leisure. He was self-effacing about his output. However, he was able to speak with artists, such as Mark Rothko, as a fellow artist.

In 1956 the Tate s Modern Art In The United States exhibition that included works of abstract expression Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko. The show influenced the outlook of painters such as Albert Irvin (1922-2015) and (Edward) Robyn Denny (1930-2014), who was then a student at the Royal College of Art.

In 1958 The Friends of The Tate was set up. Subsequently, the American Friends of The Tate was set up.

In 1960 Roland Penrose mounted the first retrospective of Picasso s work in Britain at The Tate. He helped to secure the artist s reputation. (Arthur) Douglas Cooper (1911-1984) was also an ardent admirer of the painter. He was profoundly upset by the fact that Penrose had been allowed to manage the event. The painter enjoyed mischievously playing the two men off against one another.

In 1964 Reid succeeded Rothenstein as the Director of the Tate. The appointment was unexpected as there were other curators who had far higher public profiles.

In 1968 the Hayward Gallery opened. As a result, the Tate became largely responsible for mounting its own exhibitions. Previously these had been organised by the Arts Council.

In 1970 The Tate received the Rothko paintings. On the same day, Rothko committed suicide.

Reid initiated the scheme that resulted in the construction of The Clore Gallery to house works by the painter J.M.W. Turner.¹ The building was designed by Big Jim Stirling.² It opened in 1987.

The following year Nicholas Serota took up the Directorship of the Tate Gallery. Previously, he had led the Whitechapel Gallery. There, he had revived the exhibiting gallery s reputation. Following his assumption of office at the Tate, it soon became apparent that he intended to place the institution upon a footing that was far more focused upon living artists than had been the case up until then.³ The gallery had acquired a degree of notoriety for the way in which its curators had chosen to largely ignore the works that had been being created by painters such as Francis Bacon and Lucian Freud.

In 1989 the businessman Dennis Stevenson both joined the Board of the Tate Trustees and was elected by its members to serve as their and therefore the gallery s Chairman. The Conservative government disliked the fellow s progressive views and indicated that it would veto the choice. However, Serota proved to be able to avail himself of the influence of the public relations executive Tim Bell, who was close to Prime Minister Thatcher, to imply to her that with age Stevenson might have moderated his outlook. This possibility seems to have been accepted by the premier and the appointment was allowed to go ahead. Stevenson and Serota soon developed a good working relationship with one another. As a result, the Trustees proved to be supportive of a series of initiatives that the director put forward.

Under the administrative regime that had preceded Serota, the Tate had staged exhibitions of works by Jennifer Bartlett and Julian Schnabel. Some people had concluded that in doing so the gallery had been manipulated by the artists dealers, who, some claimed, had utilised the shows to increase interest in the pair and thereby drive up the prices of their creations. The institution had incurred considerable hostile criticism in the media over the matter. Serota sought to develop a relationship between the Tate and Charles Saatchi, the principal patron the Young British Artists movement. However, since the advertising mogul sold art as well as buying it, the director appreciated that there was a need to defend the Tate from further adverse comments about its having become too susceptible to commercial influence. Therefore, the institution and the collector did not develop a rapport. As a result, the Tate did not embrace the Y.B.A.s as swiftly as many had hoped it might do so.

The Tate Prize had been established in 1984 as an award not only for artists but also for art critics, art historians, and curators. As such, it had proven to be of limited interest to the general public. In 1991 Serota persuaded his fellow jury members to refocus it so that it should only be bestowed upon artists who were aged under 50. This change helped the gallery to embrace the Y.B.A.s. The following year Damien Hirst was included on its short-list. In 1993 the award was conferred upon Rachel Whiteread. Two years later Hirst received it. By then the Prize had developed a high media profile.

In 2017 Serota stepped down as Director of the Tate.

In 2019 The Tate mounted an exhibition of Nam Ju Paik s (1932-2006) video art. He had once declared that An artist s job is to bite the hand that feeds him but not too hard.

Location: 52 Millbank, SW1P 4RG (blue, red)

Website: www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-britain www.tate.org.uk

¹. In 1979 Reid retired as Director. He resumed his career as a painter of portraits, landscapes, and still lives. The Tate acquired examples of his work.

². Stirling s best-known work is the Neue Staatsgalerie in Stuttgart. (www.staatsgalerie.de/en/museum/the-staatsgalerie/historyl)

³. Serota had started his association with the Tate during his early twenties by being a member of the Young Friends of the Tate. He had been elected to serve as the group s chairman. Under his direction, it had organised an innovative outreach programme that had sought to involve the local disadvantaged communities that lived in districts near to the gallery. However, the Tate Trustees had become anxious about this development. They had instructed the Young Friends to terminate the effort. Serota and his colleagues had declined to do so and instead had chosen to resign en masse.

David Backhouse 2024