Liverpool’s Walker Art Gallery has been allocated two Impressionist masterpieces through the Acceptance in Lieu scheme.
Claude Monet’s The Epte in Giverny and Edgar Degas’ Modiste Decorating a Hat will go on display this weekend at the gallery, which said the pieces will “ fit seamlessly into the Walker’s collection, which already holds impressive examples of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist art”.
The new acquisitions come from the collection of Mary Elliot-Blake and have been owned by the Montagu family by descent. The Walker said the paintings were allocated to it due to the family’s connection to the city of Liverpool.
The Acceptance in Lieu scheme allows those who owe Inheritance Tax to instead transfer appropriate cultural or historic objects and archives to the nation’s collections. The material accepted under the scheme is allocated to public museums, archives or libraries.
Left: The Epte in Giverny, 1884, Claude Monet. From the collection of Mary Elliot-Blake. Accepted in lieu of Inheritance Tax by HM Government and allocated to the Walker Art Gallery in 2023. c. Walker Art Gallery, National Museums Liverpool Right: Modiste
Kate O’Donoghue, Curator of International Fine Art at National Museums Liverpool, said:
“Claude Monet’s landscapes and Edgar Degas’ scenes of everyday life epitomise the Impressionist movement and it’s difficult to overstate quite how special it is to obtain these new works by two of Europe’s most famous artists.
“The artworks will sit alongside works by artists such as Paul Cézanne and Henri Matisse, helping us to tell the story of Impressionism and Post-Impressionism in a way that will no doubt inspire visitors for many years to come.”