The art gallery has on display works from the Mughal, Rajput, Bengal, Rajastani, and Tanjore schools of art.[1][2] It also has an oriental collection of Chinese, Japanese, and Balinese paintings, TibetanThangka, and unique collections of Indian mural paintings from pre-historic times.[1][4] Other items of interest include miniatures from different parts of the world, reproductions of murals of Ajanta, Bagh, Sigiriya, and Sittannavasal, and manuscripts of archival importance.[4][5][6] The gallery houses 400-year-old Tanjore miniature paintings.[4]
The gallery has 15 original works by the Roerichs[7] and 43 original works by Raja Ravi Varma.[8] Ravi Varma's rare pencil sketches are also displayed at the gallery.[8] The paintings of Ravi Varma which were earlier kept at Chithralaya in Kilimanoor were given to the art gallery by the Kilimanoor Palace as a permanent loan in 1941.[9] The palace originally handed over 70 Ravi Varma paintings but some of them are not on display at the art gallery due to space constraints.[9][7] The Kerala government undertook the restoration of Ravi Varma paintings in 2005.[10] Ravi Varma's masterpiece paintings Shakuntala and Damayanti Talking to a Swan are displayed at the gallery.
In 2010, the gallery was closed for renovation as fire broke out due to a short circuit.[11] In 2013, some paintings of C. Raja Raja Varma were reported damaged due to moisture.[7] This included the paintings Secundarabad Lake, Local Toddy Shop, and Himalaya.[7] Nine oil paintings and one water colour painting of Ravi Varma are dumped in the store room for lack of space.[7] This included the paintings Lady Swinging, Mysore Khedda, Sreerama Break the Bow, Two Horses, Procession, Portrait Study, and Butterfly.[7] The Kilimanoor Palace had lodged an official complaint that some of the paintings it handed over to the art gallery were missing.[7][12] Due to the space constraint, a new building was proposed for the gallery and foundation stone was laid in 1985, but the work did not progress.[7]
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