The Institute and its Gallery occupy the North block of Somerset House. Built by Sir William Chambers between 1776-80 it is one of the grandest and most famous neo-classical buildings in the centre of London. The offices and fine rooms which are now used by the Courtauld are rich in historical associations and were originally designed to house the Royal Academy and other learned societies. In April 2003 the Courtauld took over responsibility for the running of the Hermitage Rooms, situated in the South Block at Somerset House, when it formed an alliance with the State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg. The extended series of exhibitions planned will draw on the combined collections of scholarly resources of both the Courtauld and the Hermitage, Russia's world-renowned museum.

Resources for study at the Institute include the Book Library, the Witt & Conway Photo Libraries, the Slide Library, the IT Centre and the Gallery. The Gallery's permanent collections range from the 13th century to the present day, and include decorative arts as well as paintings. The foundation collection consists of superb Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings, and this has been augmentd by generous donations of important old master paintings, including the unique Princes Gate collection of 32 works by Rubens, as well as major works by Pieter Bruegel the Elder and Tiepolo. There is, in addition, some magnificent Renaissance furniture, several 14th and 15th century paintings, medieval ivories, 16th century Venetian and German glass, maiolica and metalwork and 20th century art. There is also an extensive collection of prints and drawings, including old master drawings.