The Royal Kennel Club Art Gallery is a world-class collection of art and artefacts about dogs. Situated in Mayfair, London, The Royal Kennel Club Art Gallery is open by appointment to all art lovers with an interest in dogs, and we welcome visitors from all over the world. Get in touch to arrange your visit.
Our collection
Our Collection includes paintings, drawings, prints, trophies sculptures, ceramics and much more. Our artefacts date from the 1st century up to the present day with special focus on works from the 19th and 20th centuries.
Our oldest item is a Celtic coin dating from AD 8 – AD 41, which is decorated with the image of a Hound. One of the most well-known dog paintings we have is entitled ‘An Early Canine Meeting’, dated 1855, which shows the very early beginnings of dog showing. We also hold the world famous Keddell Memorial Trophy for Best in Show at Crufts.
Leaders of the Pack: The Women of the Royal Kennel Club Art Collection
Until 26th March 2027
This exhibition tells the surprising story of how, across three centuries, women found an unlikely route to professional independence: painting dogs.
The Royal Kennel Club Art Gallery has brought together over 120 works by more than 100 female artists, women who largely faced exclusion from formal art training and gallery representation, yet built remarkable professional careers regardless. Spanning painting, sculpture, drawing, printmaking and medals, the works trace both how women turned to canine portraiture to carve a professional path, and the arc of female emancipation in Britain from the Victorian era to the present day.
At a moment when institutions across the cultural arts are actively reappraising the women written out of art history, the Royal Kennel Club Art Gallery has been proudly preserving their work for decades. With a fifty-fifty split of male to female artists in the collection, the gallery is leading the way for gender parity compared to others in the field.
Featured here are artworks by masters in their field, such as Maud Earl, Lilian Cheviot and Fanny Moody. These artists supported themselves entirely through dog art commissions, speaking to the appetite for canine portraiture in that era and to the determination of women who built careers entirely on their own terms.
The exhibition is not exclusively a historical survey. A number of practising artists are also featured including Anne Zoutsos, Deirdre Ashdown and Jo Van Kampen; proof that the tradition these women established is very much alive
To make a booking to see the exhibition or for more information please contact us:
Sophie is a Macclesfield-based artist specialising in graphite pet portraits, with a practice that spans acrylics, watercolour, and pastels. 2026 marks ten years of working as a professional artist, a milestone rooted in a lifelong love of drawing that began on childhood camping trips - sketchbook in hand, guided by a patient and generous grandad who taught her to truly look at the world.
Animals became her natural muse, and it was her beloved dog Woody who first inspired her focus on canine portraiture. Woody became the soul of her work, and though he passed in 2018, his spirit remains woven through everything she creates.
For The Joy of Dogs, Sophie brings that same devotion - the belief that a portrait should capture not just a likeness, but a personality, a bond, a life fully lived.
To make a booking to see the exhibition or for more information please contact us.
On the art gallery contemporary dog photography wall
Elena Marchi (Pawtique)
Until 26th March 2027
Copyright Elena Marchi
A photographic capsule exhibition by London-based photographer Elena Marchi is featured, presenting her acclaimed series of fine art canine portraits set against London's architectural landmarks. Widely recognised for pioneering this distinctive photographic approach, Marchi's striking black-and-white images explore the enduring relationship between dogs and the urban environment, creating timeless portraits that are both elegant and emotionally resonant. The exhibition also highlights her commitment to Greyhound and Galgo welfare charities through her published photographic work
To make a booking to see the exhibition or for more information please contact us.
Our guided tours at The Royal Kennel Club are delivered by our expert curators, who lead visitors through our world-class Royal Kennel Club Art Gallery and Library, and the full Royal Kennel Club art collection. The Royal Kennel Club is an unparalleled source of information on dog welfare, dog training and dog breeding, and visitors also learn more about The Royal Kennel Club's efforts to improve the health and welfare of thousands of dogs in the UK. If you are interested in organising a tour of the collection, please email
The temperatures inside the gallery are set to protect our collection and may feel cool, so we suggest bringing an extra layer for your comfort.
Private tours for groups
For a small charge of £15 per person, we can organise private tours of The Royal Kennel Club Collections and Heritage on a date to suit you. In addition, we can also offer lunch in The Royal Kennel Club Dining Room as part of a pre-booked tour, subject to availability. If you would like to know more or book a tour please contact artgallery@royalkennelclub.com
