All 212,000 of the United Kingdom's Oil Paintings are Now Online

All 212,000 of the United Kingdom's Oil Paintings are Now Online PR Newswire LONDON, December 13, 2012 LONDON, December 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Today the Public Catalogue Foundation (PCF) and the BBC completed their hugely ambitious project to put online the United Kingdom's entire collection of oil paintings in public ownership. This makes the UK the first country in the world to give such access to its national collection of paintings. In total, 3,217 venues across the UK have participated in the project and 211,861 paintings are now on the Your Paintings website at bbc.co.uk/yourpaintings. Your Paintings is a partnership between the PCF and the BBC. The PCF started making a photographic record of the UK's oil paintings in 2003. The Your Paintings website, built by the BBC, was launched with 63,000 paintings in June 2011. The project covers paintings not only held by museums and galleries but also works in universities, local councils, hospitals and even paintings held in fire stations, zoos and a lighthouse. Typically 80% of these paintings are not on view whilst the vast majority have never been photographed. All oil paintings owned by the nation are shown irrespective of perceived quality and condition. Your Paintings now allows everyone to see the full extent of the national collection for free together with BBC TV documentary archive and biographical information for selected artists from Oxford University Press.