Running from now until 22nd May, the National Gallery present Delacroix and the Rise of Modern Art, an exploration of the last painter of the Grand Style, and arguably one of the first modern masters.

From the bold colours and abstract shapes of Matisse and Kandinsky, to the expressiveness of Van Gogh and Gauguin, to the vibrant complementary colours of the Impressionists. All can be traced back to Eugène Delacroix.

Widely cited at the artist that transformed French painting in the 19th century, Delacroix and the Rise of Modern Art is a long-overdue homage to France’s leading exponent of Romanticism- a true original who, at the time of his death in 1863, was the most revered artist among the avant-garde in Paris.

Drawing inspiration from British art and literature, his real and imagined travels to North Africa, and biblical scenes; every chord of human passion can be found in Delacroix’s paintings – stories of love, murder, violence, and war. “The first merit of a painting is to be a feast for the eye,” he emphasised towards the end of his life.

Placing Delacroix alongside contemporaries such as Courbet and Chassériau, this exhibition traces 50 years of Delacroix’s legacy, exploring the profound impact he had on generations of artists to come. This exhibition is organised in collaboration with the Minneapolis Institute of Art.