英国最顶尖的两家艺术博物馆，英国国家美术馆和泰特美术馆，经过四年的磨合，终于基本达成一致，对双方馆藏珍品的分界年限渐渐不再过度计较。
根据两个美术馆在1996年达成的协议，国家美术馆应该收藏1900年之前的国际艺术作品，而泰特则应该更多地侧重在英国艺术，而且是1500至当代的英国艺术品。但公众渐渐发现，两个美术馆之间的分界日趋模糊。日前在国家美术馆开幕的毕加索特展，很明显，在一般人的眼光中，这应该是泰特的领域。
近年来，国家美术馆不断地挑战界限，去年三月，国家美术馆的新馆长曾公开表示，“国家美术馆的建立原本就是为收藏当代艺术所用的。”
虽然双边的最新共识没有公开，但根据推测双方仍认同1996年的协议方向，但对于1900年的分界线，泰特认可国家美术馆可以收购19世纪画家在20世纪的作品，如塞尚，莫奈和雷诺阿。同时，泰特也可以购买20世纪主要画家在19世纪的作品。同时，双方在举办展览时，不需要拘泥于这个时间界限。
下面是两个美术馆本年度内的主要展览：
National Gallery
From 25 February until 7 June: Picasso: Challenging the Past.
Tate Modern
Until 17 May: Rodchenko and Popova. The twin heroes of Russian constructivism.
From 25 February until 25 May: Roni Horn aka Roni Horn. The first UK museum show for the American photographer and sculptor
From 13 October until 5 April 2010: Miroslaw Balka. The Polish artist is the latest figure to take on the challenge of the Turbine Hall.
GALLERY GIANTS REACH UNEASY TRUCE OVER GREAT 1900 DIVIDE
20 Feb 2009
The two titans of the British art world, the National Gallery and the Tate, have finally edged towards a truce after four years of disagreement about where the cut-off between their collections should be. The armistice comes just days before the opening of the National Gallery's latest blockbuster, devoted to Picasso - an artist whose natural territory is, arguably, Tate Modern rather the National Gallery.
Broadly, Tate Modern covers international art from 1900, the National Gallery houses international art to 1900, and Tate Britain is the custodian of British art from 1500 to the present day.
But the National Gallery has been challenging this strict boundary in recent years. Last March, its then new director, Nicholas Penny, noted publicly that "the National Gallery was built to house contemporary art".
The latest agreement was not made available to the Guardian, and Penny and Serota declined to comment. However, it is understood that it affirms the same principles as those laid out in 1996. There are provisos to the "1900 rule": the Tate recognises that the National Gallery may wish to acquire 20th-century works by artists usually associated with the 19th (eg Cézanne, Monet and Renoir) - and vice versa. The institutions need not confine exhibitions to the period of their collections. Both agree not to seek bequests outside their basic timeframes.
（Source: Guardian，英国使馆文化教育处提供）
