Art and collections
We care for one of the world's largest and most significant collections of art and heritage objects. Explore the highlights, our latest major exhibitions, curatorial research and more.
Loaning items to exhibitions
We lend paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, ceramics and furniture to museums and galleries around the world, so they can be enjoyed by millions of visitors. Discover where some of the items we care for are displayed, and find out about our loans procedure.
Recent loans
Nancy Astor portrait on display at Kenwood House, London
The recently conserved portrait of Nancy Astor by John Singer Sargent is one of eighteen portraits of women described as the ‘Dollar Princesses’. The exhibition reveals the lives of these fascinating American women who crossed the Atlantic to marry British aristocrats in an exchange of money for titles. Heiress: Sargent's American Portraits is at Kenwood House, London, from 16 May until 5 October 2025.
Portrait by the artist Gerrit Van Honthorst travels to America
Usually on display at Ashdown in Berkshire, the portrait of Princess Elizabeth, Abbess of Hervorden by Gerrit Van Honthorst is travelling to two venues in the USA for the first time. The exhibition will explore the biblical Book of Esther as widely illustrated in seventeenth-century Holland. The Book of Esther in the Age of Rembrandt opens at the Jewish Museum in New York in March and the North Carolina Museum of Art in September 2025.
National Trust loans out procedure
Loans to exhibitions are regarded as a significant factor in providing access to Trust collections. The registrar team are happy to advise about the selection and availability of objects for loan, but we suggest preliminary research should be carried out at least a year in advance.
Discover more about how to request to loan an object for an exhibition, which objects are elegible and the processes and policies in place.
Read more about our loans out procedure
National Trust loans out terms and conditions
Loans are approved by the Loans Board, which meets four times a year.
You might also be interested in
Article
Our latest collection acquisitions
Discover some of the most recent acquisitions and the stories behind them, from paintings and objects kindly donated to the National Trust to those purchased with funds raised thanks to the generosity of visitors.
Article
Cultural Heritage Publishing
We publish two illustrated research journals every year, containing expert insights into our places and collections, curatorial content, and the latest conservation news.
Article
12 golden objects to see up close
From goldwork and gilding to goldsmithing and jewellery making, discover the ways in which gold has been used in the objects in our collections.
Article
Celebrating 125 treasures in our collections
Discover the stories behind some of the greatest artworks and artefacts looked after by the National Trust, as told in a dedicated book, 125 Treasures from the Collections of the National Trust.