How do you inspire a modern, indifferent audience to re-engage with and visit the National Gallery?

You turn the idea of a Gallery on its head. Instead of waiting for the public to come to the art, you take the art to the public. A year and a half in planning and production, the Grand Tour took the Gallery experience out into the streets for twelve weeks. Forty-four exact replica paintings complete with reproduction frames were hung amongst the pubs, clubs, taxi ranks and takeaways of the bustling centre of London.

The paintings appeared overnight in the summer of 2007, to the excitement and intrigue of the public. After a couple of days, information plaques appeared next to each painting with facts about each artwork, an explanation of the project and a phone number to access unique audio commentary on the painting recorded by gallery experts. Printed maps were available from the Gallery, and circulated to local shops, bars and cafés. A website was built by Digit (www.thegrandtour.org.uk) which contained downloadable themed tours, route planners, audio commentary, podcasts and photosharing.