Over the last month you may have walked past the ‘Art On Your Doorstep’ hoarding opposite Grants on the High Street, which on one side promotes the new Museum of Croydon exhibition ‘Croydon Art Collection: Matching Masterpieces. This exhibition, which complements the National Gallery’s ‘Art On Your Doorstep’ trail, opened this week on level 1 of the Museum. It’s a rare opportunity to see art from the Museum’s collection, which is usually stored away from public view in their basement archives, so we were eager to pop along to take a look.

The 30 or so artworks, from paintings and drawings, to mixed-media creations and even a carving, represent a diverse selection of styles and periods, from early 19th century classical artworks to modern masterpieces. The clever part is that each collection piece has been selected by the Museum’s curatorial team, Jessica Woolf and Elanor Straw, to link with one of the National Gallery’s Art On Your Doorstep paintings that have been replicated at life size (frame and all) and placed in various key places around the borough.

As we’ve spotted a fair few of the Art On Your Doorstep pieces, we particularly enjoyed the ‘matches’ where we’ve already encountered their outdoor partner.

We don’t want to spoil the exhibition for you but we couldn’t resist sharing just a few to whet your appetites.

‘A Surrey Lane’ by John Clayton Adams (1840-1906) has been paired with ‘A Wheatfield, With Cypresses’ by Van Gogh (1853-1890) which is currently viewable in The Queen’s Gardens. It’s interesting to compare two works painted within a decade of each other and depicting similar landscapes created in such opposing styles.

‘The Brigands’ by George Cattermole (1800-1868) has been paired with ‘Corner of a Café-Concert’ by Manet (1832-1883) presumably for their similar eras and rather boozy content. You can see the latter on the Fell Road side of The Queen’s Gardens.

‘The Potter’s Daughter’ by William Stephen Coleman (1829-1904) has been paired with ‘Self Portrait in a Straw Hat’ by Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun (1755-1842) – women in hats partaking in the arts… we saw the latter on the Park Hill Park railings.

‘The Rock of Destiny’ by Croydon artist John Harris Valda (1874-1942) has been paired with ‘The Fighting Temeraire’ by Turner (1775-1851), I like to think because of their vibrant skies. The Turner is currently on display outside Coulsdon Sixth Form College.

‘Water Lily Bay/Hills with Water’ by Alfred de Breanski (1852-1928) has been paired with ‘The Water-Lily Pond’ by Monet (1840-1926). Another example of similar time periods and tranquil landscapes (and indeed names) but wildly differing styles. The latter you can see alongside Van Gogh’s Wheatfield, as part of the landscapes collection in the grassy area of The Queen’s Gardens.

The ‘mini’ drawing titled ‘A Moor and his horse’ by W. B. Goodfellow (date not known) has (of course) been paired with the gigantic ‘Whistlejacket’ by Stubbs (1724-1806) which you won’t be able to miss, by the café in Park Hill Park. (I love the humour of this little and large equine pairing).

In case you’re wondering why the Croydon Art Collection isn’t on public display, this is because it’s made up of more than 2,000 pieces, so we’d essentially need our own Tate-sized building to display them all! Although the collection includes many local artists as well as local scenes (you can see views of the Whitgift Almshouses and Crown Hill in the exhibition), it was established in the 1890s when many artworks were given as gifts to decorate the newly built Town Hall and Clocktower. It also grew substantially in the 1960s when the Council’s education department and Croydon School of Art had significant links, which meant many pieces from both students and teachers were acquired (including from Bridget Riley). If you’re interested in exploring further, a large part of the collection is accessible online here.

‘Croydon Art Collection: Matching Masterpieces’ is on until 20 June 2026 at the Museum of Croydon on Level 1 of Croydon Clocktower – open Wednesdays-Saturdays 10am-4:30pm.

Find out more about the Art On Your Doorstep trail and download a trail map here to get matching.

As part of the Museum’s exhibition they will be running free, drop in life drawing sessions in their Special Exhibitions Gallery every other Saturday afternoon, starting 14 March. Keep an eye out for other events on their Instagram.

Image 3b (Van Gogh), 6b (Turner) and 7b (Monet) courtesy of Culture Croydon by Glenn Foster. Image 8b courtesy of Sam Clark.

Posted by Julia