# National Portrait Gallery acquires Charli xcx image as new album tops chart

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/charli-xcx-portrait-added-to-national-portrait-gallery-collection/
- Published: 2026-07-27T12:02:05+00:00
- Updated: 2026-07-27T18:14:01+00:00
- Original publisher: The Guardian (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2026/jul/27/charli-xcx-portrait-added-to-national-portrait-gallery-collection
- Topics: Art, Celebrity, Culture, Entertainment, Fashion, Music

## Key points

- Charli xcx portrait by Harley Weir joins National Portrait Gallery collection
- New album Music, Fashion, Film led UK's midweek chart
- Could become her fourth UK No 1, second this year

## Summary

The National Portrait Gallery has acquired a 2023 portrait of Charli xcx by photographer Harley Weir, adding the pop star to its collection as her new album, Music, Fashion, Film, sat at No 1 in the UK's midweek chart. Senior curator Brandei Estes described Charli as "one of the defining cultural figures of her generation", with the image, one of the key visuals of her era-defining 2024 album Brat, going on show in the gallery's History Makers Now space, its purchase funded by a gift from the Bukhman Foundation.

Music, Fashion, Film, released on Friday, was on course to become Charli's fourth UK No 1 and second of the year, following February's chart-topping Wuthering Heights soundtrack, running ahead of releases from Snow Patrol, Shania Twain and the Strokes. She also released three surprise B-side tracks over the weekend, while the album track Camera nods to her growing film career, which includes roles in Erupcja, 100 Nights of Hero and Sacrifice; she is next set to appear in projects including a film from director Takashi Miike, before headlining Reading and Leeds festival and touring North America in the autumn.

## Coverage

- [The Guardian: National Portrait Gallery acquires Charli xcx image as new album tops chart](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2026/jul/27/charli-xcx-portrait-added-to-national-portrait-gallery-collection)
- [BBC Entertainment: Charli XCX photo purchased by National Portrait Gallery](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwyrqvz0xwdo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss)

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.