Lily Allen and artist Nieves González unveiled the original West End Girl painting at the National Portrait Gallery on 19th March, 2026. Spanish artist Nieves González’s instantly iconic portrait of Lily Allen is now on public display at the National Portrait Gallery.
González was commissioned to paint Allen’s portrait for the cover of her seminal West End Girl album, and the original painting has been loaned by Allen to the National Portrait Gallery’s contemporary collection for one year. The painting shows Allen seated against a dark background, wearing a baby blue puffer jacket with white polka dots. Allen commissioned the painting from Nieves González and subsequently used it as the cover art for West End Girl. Allen’s globally acclaimed fifth studio album, it was released in October 2025 and was the most streamed digital- only release by a British artist in 2025. The album has now been streamed over 300 million times.
Nieves González is a Spanish artist known for her classical oil paintings and contemporary reinterpretation of 17th-century portraiture. Her work blends classical techniques with modern aesthetics such as the style of puffer jacket Allen wears in the painting, a recurring motif in Gonzalez’s work. González has quickly emerged as one of the most compelling voices in figurative painting today, with West End Girl marking her first work to be loaned to a major UK public institution.
I’m so pleased to make this special painting available for everyone to see. Nieves captured the feel of the album so brilliantly and I knew immediately it would make a very strong album cover. It seems to me the portrait reflects so many facets of the album – strength, power, vulnerability, determination and confusion, amongst many others – that it acts as a key to the whole listening experience. I love it. I’m so pleased to make this special painting available in the National Portrait Gallery, for everyone to see.” Lily Allen
I wanted it to be an intimate and direct image, but also powerful. To show her strength, her wisdom, through the eyes of the contemporary women that we are. That balance between the classical and the contemporary was essential to me. This work reflects how art and music come together in the act of creation, with all its layers and facets. The fact that the National Portrait Gallery is going to exhibit this piece is overwhelming. This West End girl has become something more than an image, and I feel enormously fortunate to have been part of that journey. Using the language of the great historical portraits is not about looking back, it’s about claiming that authority and putting it at the service of a new narrative.
The National Portrait Gallery is not just another room. It is the place where a society decides who becomes part of its history. Having this work there is a conversation that goes far beyond me.” Nieves González
The National Portrait Gallery’s Collection celebrates the people who have shaped our history and culture, and Lily Allen is undoubtedly one of the defining voices of her generation. I am delighted to show Nieves González’s extraordinary portrait of Lily on our walls. It is such a striking work, deeply rooted in classical tradition yet unmistakably contemporary, and it has fast become an iconic image. I know it will resonate powerfully with our audiences.”
Victoria Siddall, Director, National Portrait Gallery
