Tate Britain

(16 customer reviews )

Pimlico station, just beyond the ticket barriers in the station

Guided by Rick Jones

Adult: £20 · Students & Seniors: £15 · Children: £5

Walk Times

Day Walk Type Start Time End Time
Monday Weekly 2.30 pm 4.30 pm Winter Summer Reserve Online

On a tour of Tate Britain with arts critic Rick Jones you will see the best of British painting and sculpture over 500 years, a collection assembled initially by the sugar refiner Henry Tate, inventor of the sugar cube.

You will meet the Cholmendeley Ladies of the Tudor court and the Kytsons of Hengrave Hall whom Elizabeth I visited.

You will see the satirical, moral and political works of William Hogarth and portraits from the studios of Thomas Gainsborough and Joshua Reynolds. You may appreciate breeding in the animal paintings of George Stubbs.

You will enter the mystical gallery of poet-painter William  Blake and fall in love with the romantic idealism of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood – William Morris, Dante Gabriel Rossetti Edward Burne-Jones, William Holman Hunt.

You may wonder at the romantic landscapes of John Constable and the awesome power of nature in scenes by JMW Turner. You will whiff the grease-paint in the music hall paintings of Walter Sickert and sense the rhythm in the jazz-age vorticist William Roberts.

You will admire the impressionist naturalism of the American adoptive Englishmen John Singer Sargent and James MacNeill Whistler.

 

You will wander among statues and busts by Sir Frederic Leighton and Jacob Epstein and yearn to feel the contours of the surreal sculptures by Henry Moore.

BEARS REPEATING, THIS ONE’S GUIDED BY ARTS CRITIC RICK JONES

16 reviews for Tate Britain

  1. tania illingworth

    absolutely first class: clear delivery, knowledgeable, entertaining, and Rick got us through the whole of the Tate selecting one major painting from each century thus keeping the right pace throughout. Thank you so much.

  2. Rowland

    What an absolutely delightful afternoon! Ricks intimate knowledge of art just brings the pictures to life. His rendition of The Lady of Shalott…… AMAZING…….Learnt so much. Do not miss

  3. Sam Jacobs

    Fantastic afternoon. I so enjoyed Rick’s encyclopaediac knowledge and wonderful introduction to Tate Britain. I can’t recommend this walk highly enough.

  4. Ann Robinson

    Wow! Honestly the best tour of a gallery I’ve ever been on. Rick is so knowledgeable and this tour of Tate Britain opened my eyes to the history, politics and lives behind the paintings and sculpture. Very highly recommended.

  5. Shelagh Zachariades

    We have just returned from Rick’s Tate Britain walk. It was incredible and we can’t recommend it highly enough. Inspired us to return to the gallery again to explore but also to look for some other tours by Rick.

  6. Judith P

    I am not a frequent visitor to museums and know little to nothing about art; however I thought that going to a museum with an art critic would be an excellent way to educate myself/learn to enjoy visiting art museums. I wasn’t wrong with Rick’s tour!!
    Rick is an excellent guide! He chose pieces from the Tate Britain that he felt were important, described and gave historical context to, and added fun details on each piece. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and learned much. I highly recommend this tour with Rick!

  7. Karen

    Just been on a sublime tour of Tate Britain with Rick. Learned so much about British art from Van Dyke through to Hockney. Rick truly brought the paintings alive with his detailed and studied descriptions. Not only adding to knowledge of the works but the societal values and ideas of their time. A splendid couple of hours with an engaging host.

  8. Mary LaGrandeur

    You don’t have to know a lot about art to thoroughly enjoy this tour. While the size of the Tate Britain alone, may seem overwhelming, Rick presents a major work from each century in interesting detail and perspective with a great sense of humor. I highly recommend this tour, and Rick is a fantastic guide!

  9. Angie Bowen

    Five stars for this guide and this tour! I am not an expert on art – really a novice who just wanted to learn about and appreciate British art. Rick was able to connect with everyone! I recommend for ANYONE!

  10. Ms. Gaby Terrasse

    Excellent tour. Rick showed us around the Tate Britain in a way in which we had not seen before. He is very knowledgeable, making a historical link through the paintings for the visit, creating a story, adding anecdotes and fun details which are easy to retain, very informative and pertinent. We are a family of 4 with 2 teenagers who were very interested in what he had to say. Thank you Rick for this great afternoon at the Tate

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