Portraits: British Royals

[Elly C]

A portrait of Queen Victoria with John Brown is to be auctioned. Lovely if it could become part of the Royal Collection

BBC News

[Burzg]

Originally Posted by Elly C

A portrait of Queen Victoria with John Brown is to be auctioned. Lovely if it could become part of the Royal Collection

BBC News

veyr nice thanks you

[Lumutqueen]

Unseen portrait of Edward VIII in royal robes after the Coronation that never was | Mail Online

[Duchessmary]

Thanks for sharing. One of those historical "What if's"

[Vasillisos Markos]

My dear Lumutqueen,

Thanks for posting the link to the article. I don't mean to sound unkind but the portrait of Edward VIII makes him look foppish and not very majestic. Of course, this is only one man's opinion but that is what I think. Didn't Kings at the time wear their military uniforms at the coronations?

[NGalitzine]

^^^^
No, that is pretty much what his brother George VI wore at his coronation. I suspect Charles III will wear naval uniform.

[Vasillisos Markos]

Originally Posted by NGalitzine

^^^^
No, that is pretty much what his brother George VI wore at his coronation. I suspect Charles III will wear naval uniform.

My dear NGalitzine,

Right you are, thank you for the correction. I guess when I saw photos of the King moving through the Abbey, the robes covered most of what he wore and I just assumed his uniform was underneath. Not a very manly look is it?

[Kasumi]

Royals' own set of kings and queens paintings revealed - Telegraph
A set of paintings of England’s kings and queens, which has been on display in Buckingham Palace since it was bought by Prince Albert almost 170 years ago, is going on public view for the first time.

The 25 tiny enamels of the country’s monarchs, from Edward III to Victoria herself, have been loaned to a cathedral for a special exhibition to mark the Diamond Jubilee.

Southwell Minster – in the Nottinghamshire town where Charles I spent his last night before surrendering – is putting the unique portraits on show to highlight the role of the sovereign as Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

[Warren]

The photograph can be reproduced here as it is "not for profit" and not for commercial use.

Diamond Jubilee Portrait - New Zealand

Portrait © The Royal Household

[centurians14]

I found this beautiful bank note with a picture of Queen Elizabeth II with the Burmese Ruby Tiara, the other day and wanted to share this beautiful image.
i also brought the bank note!

Also the link below has great photos of it.
(p.s hope i inserted the link correctly)

THE BURMESE RUBY TIARA « The Anglophile

[marine2109]

Queen Elizabeth II Portrait
England - April 2012

WENN Photo Library - Search Results

[marine2109]

Over 200,000 children's portraits are projected on to the front of Buckingham Palace
London, England - 19.04.12

WENN Photo Library - Search Results

Cannons to ring in the Queen's 86th birthday

http://www.hellomagazine.com/celebri...04-2012/59240/

[marine2109]

Buckingham Palace is filled with light and color in 86 th birthday of Queen Elizabeth

El Palacio de Buckingham se llena de luz y color en el 86º cumpleaños de la reina Isabel

Google Google Translate

[marine2109]

Pantone portrait of the Queen
UK - May 2012

WENN Photo Library - Search Results

Like mother, like daughter: The Queen shows growing resemblance to her mother in new portrait to mark diamond jubilee

The Queen shows growing resemblance to her mother in new portrait to mark jubilee | Mail Online

[EIIR]

Australia has unveiled a new portrait of the Queen by the Australian artist, Ralph Heimans. It's 9 feet by 11 feet and shows HM in the Sacrarium of Westminster Abbey. It's on display at the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra.

Australia unveils The Queen 'in reflection' portrait | UK News | Express.co.uk - Home of the Daily and Sunday Express

[Dman]

Diamond Jubilee: Queen's 'vulnerable' official portrait published - Telegraph

[AdmirerUS]

Re: the new portrait
I try to be as positive as possible about gestures of generosity and gratefulness. So. let me just say thanks to Australia and Ralph Heimans (the artist) for making the effort. Mr. Heimans said he wanted to show her vulnerability and be honest.

So he put her majesty in a gown that is highly fitted under the bodice, in her robes and jewels alone in Westminster Abbey at dusk. Honest? Ahem.

When was the last time we saw HM in an Empire waist gown? How often do we suppose her to take out the ermines and diamonds and run over to the Abbey to play dress up on the Cosmati pavement? If she is alone - who helped her with that coronation robe?

Yes - I get it that the artist was using the setting as metaphor for her reign. The rendering of her face is lovely. It is an excellent and lovely face in full reflection. I even like the idea that she is thoughtful, absorbed and full of many emotions. But in half full regalia (no crown) alone in an echoing church? Yech. It is a bit creepy. That's not how many of us think of Elizabeth II.

It's also an excellent portrait of the Abbey, a decent rendering of light and shadow, etc. But overall, the metaphor fails for me. Just my opinion.

[Catherine J]

What social grace you have. I mean that sincerely. Not many people could express such a critical opinion framed in a way that made the argument audible. I should be taking notes.

I also, overall, admire the portrait and, without any doubt respect the artist for a very rich piece of fine art and the subject for who she is.

That said, this is a well thought out opinion. And looking again at the portrait through these rational criticisms, I am mostly in agreement. The setting is less a bother to me. I understand and appreciate the metaphor at work and understand that such works often must tell a large story on a small canvas so ... I will say that it could be worse. Better maybe, but definitely worse.

What venue might you have chosen?

The comments as to the choices in adornment or lack thereof are extremely compelling and I am inclined to just say "as you say".

In particular the lack of a crown, either on her head, in her hands or hanging on a coat rack nearby is unsettling. The trappings he chose are not those one immediately associates with Sovereign or Monarch. She might well be a religious figure (which is another discussion, isn't it?) and the robes and dress make her look more matronly, in a dress-up kind of way, that I believe befits her station.

She *IS* the Queen of England. And she may indeed reflect and be reflective, lonely and a windowless monad, for all we know - but the Crown does not feel like a ceremonial trapping, as the robes do. The Crown is the symbol, in a literal, figurative and alliterative way, of her Sovereignty. It is NOT a trapping, it is the token or symbol of an entire way of life for an entire group of peoples. In Canada we swear allegiance to "The Crown". When we hunt we hunt on "Crown Land". When they take you to court, it is "The Crown" arresting you.

I understand the intent was casual - but the result is not, it is just crownless. There is nothing casual about it. Her facial pose does not count - she *has* no casual look that I have ever seen. Thank the gods. :) But it IS a very good likeness of her face and he has done a magnificent job of sharing her kindness and the even stare of the truly compassionate, so there is that :)

Again, thanks for the assessment.

[AdmirerUS]

Originally Posted by Catherine J

...

I also, overall, admire the portrait and, without any doubt respect the artist for a very rich piece of fine art and the subject for who she is.

Again, thanks for the assessment.

Thanks for listening - it is an underrated skill.

I thought more about my post after I let it go and decided that for me it would work perfectly as a posthumous portrait. (I don't even want to type that). It fails for me because all that metaphor reminds me of endings and death.

I still see HM as the vibrant, important, ruling woman she is. She may have aged, but she is still very active. Passing a milestone alone is not a reason to hang up one's spurs, even metaphorically.

I think the figure of the queen in crown in the Abbey with her figure filling the picture would be less unsettling for me. It would give a nod back to the road she has traveled since the Coronation. It would show her as she is. And I do think the figure as is succeeds as a lovely likeness.

And mine is an almost purely emotional reaction, I admit that fully. For me she is an active ruler, an aging ruler, but very alive to change and relevant in many ways. This week's example of her question about Hamza is an example. She is clearly still in the game and doing her duty for the Kingdom. Long live Her Majesty!

[EIIR]

I'm no art buff by any stretch of the imagination; I like what I like and I don't like what I don't like. There have certainly been several very divisive portraits of HM over the years, some of which are positively ghastly.

My immediate impression of this one is positive. I think the light captured in the Abbey and on the Queen is very effective. Having HM standing on the spot where she was anointed in a solemn religious service which obviously meant a great deal to her really works for me. I'm actually surprised no-one's done it before. It's very evocative, to me, of Mr Shakespeare's Henry IV part II, "uneasy lies the head that wears the crown". It conveys the solitude and vulnerability of the role, its individual character but also its majesty.

The Queen doesn't need a crown to show she's a Queen; it's obvious within seconds of looking at this painting that this is a leader who has dedicated herself heart and soul to her coronation oath she made on that exact spot. For me, it's one of the best portraits of HM for many a year.

Plus, I always like seeing HM's snow-white hair .