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A treasure trove of more than 13,000 paintings owned by the nation is be shown for the first time in a public exhibition.
The Government Art Collection is one of the country's best-kept secrets, featuring works from the 16th century right up to the present day.
The paintings have been bought - at taxpayers' expense - to hang in government buildings all over the world.
Two thirds of them are on loan at any one time but when they are at home they live in racks in an airy depot in central London.
The collection is worth millions of pounds, although it has never been valued officially, and spans British artists from John Constable to Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin.
Now, for the first time in the collection's 113-year history, some of them will feature in an exhibition at the Whitechapel Gallery in London next summer.
The exhibits have each been chosen by public figures, such as the prime minister's wife Samantha Cameron.
She picked Lowry's Lancashire Fair: Good Friday, Daisy Nook - currently hanging in Downing Street. Peter Mandelson chose an anonymous painting of Queen Elizabeth I.
Culture Minister Ed Vaizey described how the collection began. "It started in a typically British way. Parliament was looking at refurbishing government Whitehall buildings and it decided it was cheaper to buy paintings to cover the stains on the walls than it was to buy expensive wallpaper and expensive redecorations so it started by accident."
Mr Vaizey, by the way, chose a Tracey Emin.
Penny Johnson, the collection's director, said: "We are very keen to find works that have connections or associations with a place, be it cultural, political or historical.
"Our works of art are displayed all around the world meaning that we're the world's largest museum."
For the exhibition, former minister Lord Boateng selected Peas Are The New Beans, by Bob and Roberta Smith, because it was on display when he was at the "bean-counting" Treasury.
Gus O’Donnell, head of the civil service, subsequently had it in his office building and said that it inspired the maxim: "Pace, passion, pride and professionalism".
Exceptions are made to the British art rule - like Andy Warhol's painting of the Queen, which is on display in the embassy in New York.
Only a few works are bought each year, with the emphasis on preserving Britain's cultural heritage.
So, is the collection any good? Art critic Dr Richard Cork said: "On the one hand the collection is very historical but on the other hand they do like being adventurous, looking at young artists, taking a few risks."
Ministers stress that the collection will not be put up for sale, even in these straitened times.
Not bad for something that was once just a substitute for wallpaper.
SKYNEWS
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