The first woman to chair the National Gallery is stepping down from the role.

Hannah Rothschild, who was appointed to the position in 2015, will leave the post in September.

She said: “After 10 years as a trustee of the National Gallery and during my fifth as chair, I have decided with sadness to step down in order to devote more time to my writing and to my family’s wide-ranging activities and philanthropic concerns.”

Hannah Rothschild
Hannah Rothschild (Harry Cory-Wright/PA)

National Gallery director Gabriele Finaldi said Rothschild had “supported digital innovation, greater engagement with contemporary artists, a strong learning programme and a broad national and international presence for the gallery”.

Rothschild, whose books include The Baroness and The Improbability Of Love, cited playing a part in appointing a “diverse, gender-balanced board” and the gallery’s acquisition of works by Titian, Bellotto, Bridget Riley and others as highlights of her tenure.