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National Portrait Gallery, London
'Lightness of Being' by Chris Levine, 2004.
LONDON – She is the most photographed woman in the world and no monarch has been more depicted in portraits.
Her image is everywhere – from our English bank bills and postage stamps to countless photographs in newspapers and magazines. While not a royalist, I never tire of looking at pictures of Queen Elizabeth II, but I cannot tell you why.
Until now.
National Portrait Gallery, London
Queen Elizabeth II by Hiroshi Sugimoto, 1999.
Paul Moorhouse, curator of 'The Queen: Art and Image', an exhibition that recently opened at London's National Portrait Gallery, told me my fascination was shared by many.
"What we all try to do is understand the enigma," he said. "It's a paradox. We have all these images of her, but for most of us, we actually know very little about the queen."
And it's true. By looking at a range of different images and listening to her occasional public statements, I hope to glean a little more about the woman, the great-grandmother, the human being behind the icon.
An early visitor to the exhibition, Gareth Jones, from Camden in London, agrees.
"You think you know things about her," he said. "But it's not until you see it laid-out like this that you start to appreciate the life she has led over sixty years. It's powerful."
Fit for a queen: 60 years of style
Jones, a self-described fan of the queen, found one work particularly revealing.
Looking at Chris Levine's 2004 holographic photograph 'Lightness of Being' was like "intruding on a private moment, as the queen closes her eyes, almost in meditation," he said.
National Portrait Gallery, London
Queen Elizabeth II, by Pietro Annigoni, 1969.
Yvonne Bennett, from Sevenoaks, outside of London, was captivated by the same image.
"I could stand and look at it all day," she said.
Among the dozens of varied pictures, photographs and mixed media in the exhibition, one portrait stands out. Amid the Pop Art, punk art and high art depictions, Hiroshi Sugimoto's 1999 portrait feels wrong and out of place.
One visitor wondered why it lacked the warmth of other pictures. We then discovered that the photograph is of a waxwork, and not the monarch herself.
Queen Elizabeth II's lunch for world monarchs sparks controversy
There was a tangible difference between that portrait and, for example, a much earlier, highly formal painting by Pietro Annigoni, dating from 1954-5, the early years of her reign.
In the Annigoni, the young queen is noble and remote, like an empress, but also very human.
While the exhibit tells a story of a changing monarchy, it is also obvious that the queen has carefully controlled her image over the years.
NBC News
Kim Dong-Yoo's mosaic 'Elizabeth vs Diana', left, is made up of hundreds of tiny images of Princess Diana. A close-up view is shown at right.
"But when you compare portraits from one decade with another, you start to understand the preoccupations of the time, and then you appreciate that the queen has had to face some very dark times,” said Bridget Findlay of Portsmouth.
Video: Queen seen as inspiration at Jubilee parade
Findlay’s favorite was a reflection of those dark times: 'Elizabeth vs Diana' is a mosaic of the queen's head created from tiny images of Princess Diana, her erstwhile daughter-in-law who died in a car crash in 1997 after an embarrassingly public split with Prince Charles.
"It's simply startling," Findlay said. "I never expected to see that and it took me a while to work out what it was."
The Queen makes her first televised Christmas broadcast on Dec. 25,1957.
Kim Dong-Yoo's 2007 mosaic – one of several works that would be seen as irreverent if not almost disrespectful – is confirmation that this is not an official exhibition sanctioned by Buckingham Palace. Instead, curator Paul Moorhouse called it a celebration for a diamond jubilee.
If I had to choose one image that summed up the exhibit for me, it would be a small, rather insignificant newspaper photograph of a family gathered around a TV set watching the queen's first televised Christmas message broadcast in 1957.
She speaks while we, the observers, look and listen. Six decades on, are we any closer to knowing the most depicted woman in history?
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"God save the Queen"
God forgive the queen.
There is no god or "magic man in the sky," just a deluded British population who in most part, continues to pay taxes to subsidize this ridiculous, useless, wasteful "royal" family. I look at pictures of Elizabeth and her extended family and laugh, wondering how others believe that there is something special about the "royals."
All men and women are created equal and should have the right to democratically elect their political leaders. Just imagine Congress, the President, and the Supreme Court judges wearing crowns and see how fast Americans would vote to boot their asses out of office.
That is if you could get Americans off their lazy A$$es to vote !
Was she already dead in the top photo? Did God kill the Queen?
amietamant
Tell us how you really feel.
You come out of the gate with: "There is no god or "magic man in the sky," then continue ranting about the Royal Family, laughing at the Queen and her extended family. And then, as if that wasn't enough, you throw in the entire British population by saying: " just a deluded British population".
Midway on the backstretch, you continue with:"all men and women are created equal" You just got through telling us "there is no God" but now "all men and women are created equal?". You can't have it both ways. Which one will it be?
Rounding the final turn you say: "should have the right to democratically elect their political leaders.” I agree, as most reading this will agree, that we should have the right to democratically elect our political leaders. I'm guessing you don't know much about the Government of the UK. Their government is a "Parliamentary Democracy" with a constitutional Monarch (the Queen). Cutting to the chase they have parliament. Parliament has a bunch of Ministers that are "elected" every 5 years. The Queen selects the "Prime" Minister.
Now on the Home Stretch you really let loose the reigns and say: "Just imagine Congress, the President, and the Supreme Court judges wearing crowns and see how fast Americans would vote to boot their asses out of office"
Now that is laughable! Our Government (a democracy) acts more like a Dictatorship than a country actually ruled by a dictator. Our country is in a shambles with corruption all over the place. People lining their pockets with sweet defense contracts, guaranteed jobs in the private sector after leaving office, full pensions after a 2 or 4 year term, medical coverage exclusive to them and far superior than any coverage the American public can obtain. The middle and lower class pay more taxes than the upper class. They get elected and immediately throw away what they campaigned on and take action on their own agenda. Our “elected leaders” are better then you, better than me, and they know it. They don’t need to wear crowns but could if they wanted to. And the Americans haven’t done, and can’t do sh!t to change it. We are so short sided it’s pathetic.
Boot their asses out of office. Right, like that’s ever going to happen. We are too focused on fighting with each other to even begin to think about booting anyone out of office.
The British have been at it over a thousand years and are still here. America will be long gone before we make it to 450.
I dare you to go down to a real British Pub and say some of this crap. We need a “feel good” news story.
@Devls:
Here, here! Couldn't have said it better!
She truly is a fasinating woman. God protect and save the Queen
I have many "portraits" of my daughter with her eyes closed. No, she just blinked. Thank heavens for photoshoppe and a deft hand. BTW, I love the Queen. Love her or hate her, she really embodies the royal title.
Portrait of a glorified welfare receipiant, the closed eyes are perfect as it looks like a redneck family photo like "My name is Earl"...........
What do you know, JERK!!!
I agree with Seven2Seven, the whole royal pack on inbred elitist really has no place in modern society, especially when it involves tax money being paid to ensure their title. F*ck the queen and all her inbred cohorts.
I believe the proper retort is, "Haters gotta hate." What a sad lot who do not know the difference between dignity, elegance and eloquence versus gutter sniping, indecent and foul. It has nothing to do with title or money. It has everything to do with respectability, graciousness and honor. Even the poorest of the poor, lowest of the low can exhibit admirable traits. Sadly, so many others lack these qualities, and don't object to advertising their ignorance of them.
Whether princess or pauper, Queen Elizabeth II has earned respect. We should pay it.
well said Zapper! Queen Elizabeth II is a LADY. She is a figurehead only, the people elect their representatives. When her subjects decide they no longer want their royalty, they will vote them down. Until then, please respect them and their customs. Elizabeth did not ask for the crown, but she has worn it with dignity and grace for 60 years.
Simply stunning! I am an American who is somewhat fascinated by the royals and the Queen in particular. God save the Queen!
Read this and tell us why in the world God should save the queen
The British Royal Family Exposed
« on: May 13, 2011, 10:47:41 PM »
1. The real name of the Royal Family (before it was changed to Windsor in 1917) is Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. They hail from Bavaria, Germany. Queen Victoria's grandfather was the reigning British monarch, George III, the eldest son of The Prince Frederick, Prince of Wales and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. Her German-born mother was known as Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. The modern royal family was founded in 1840 when Queen Victoria married Albert of Saxe-Coburg, a Germany duchy.
2. Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, have a great, great grandmother in common: Queen Victoria.
3. Two of Prince Philip’s German relatives invited to the royal wedding (William & Kate) on Friday, Philipp zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg and Markgraf Max von Baden, belong to families, who had many members in the Nazi party.
4. It is well documented that Prince Philip’s sister, Sophia, was married to Christopher of Hesse-Cassel, an SS colonel who named his eldest son Karl Adolf in Hitler’s honour. Indeed, all four of Philip’s sisters married high-ranking Nazis. The prospect of the former Nazis and Nazi sympathisers attending his 1947 wedding to the future Queen of England meant he was allowed to invite only two guests.
5. Nazi links emerged in a book recently that featured never before published photographs of Prince Philip aged 16 at the 1937 funeral of his elder sister Cecile, flanked by relatives in SS and Brownshirt uniforms. Another picture shows his youngest sister, Sophia, sitting opposite Hitler at the wedding of Hermann and Emmy Goering. Philip was forced to concede that his family found Hitler’s attempts to restore Germany’s power and prestige ‘attractive’ and admitted they had ‘inhibitions about the Jews’.
Because the Queen is a human being and sometimes God needs to save human beings?
God save Paul Reubens!
Mommy, mommy, my crown is too tight!
Consider the very 1st monarch... what made them ROYAL?
I say, I am Royal and each of my little seedlings is ROYALTY...
So there!
.....well, the trick to that is to get the rest of the world to believe it at the same time.
Royalty, just like any other leadership, is a state conferred by the governed. If you have a distaste for monarchy, you must be appalled by what we now have in our White House.
Just couldn't let it go. A story about England and the Right has to sticking anything in anywhere. Spend a little time reading Romney's record as governor and then you can comment on the proper venue.
It must be a dull day in 'world news' at msnbc.
Maybe. You showed up.
Grow up!
Play nice kids.
American "leaders" could take a lesson from her. Born into the job she has never wavered in her duty to the nation imposed upon her by birth. Served in WWII. Still married to the same man. Has tried never to criticize other leaders in public. She is a rock. The living "Constitution" of the UK. In a world of petty tyrants, greedy pols, backstabbing bloggers and unbridled money from plutocrats trying to buy elections, I'll stick with her any time.
I'd vote for you twice, if I could.
Is she perfect? Of course not. But she has far more positive traits than negative ones.
Well said!! Couldn't agree more.
by Brenda Norrell
Censored News
The media refuses to examine where England's 'Royal' family got their wealth: from the blood and resources of Indigenous Peoples.
Instead, the media wants the world to celebrate this opulence, greed and genocide.
Censored News challenges the London Guardian to expose the amount and source of the Royal family's wealth.
How much of this luxury has come from the blood of Indigenous fighting to defend their lands from colonization, theft, mining and destruction? How much of this opulence has come from the exploitation of the natural resources of the land, water and air that is now poisoned by mining, drilling and pollution?
Many Americans, especially those glued to TVs, would rather delude themselves with fantasy than look at the facts, or the true history, of exploitation, genocide and the rape of natural resources.
It is easier for them and it leaves more time for shopping. It makes lives of denial easy. They do not want to concern themselves with what has really happened, and is happening, because of the crimes of England, the US and Canada.
As long as the media can keep the spin going, and the lobbyists ensure profits by way of government legislation, there's nothing like a fantasy wedding to distract from the real issues. Few want to examine the truth of Guantanamo, US torture or the US role in narcotrafficking and US gun running in Mexico. Few want to know the truth of the bogus wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, the US plans to wrap new nuclear disasters and power plants in the label of "green" and spin this into fantasy economies. They've targeted Indian country as usual.
Some of the elected chairmen and councils have painted a new smile on oil and gas drilling in sacred places. The US Energy Dept. is ready for them, with their slick promises of jobs to disguise toxic genocide. They'll all be taking their expense accounts derived from coal-fired power plants, logging and mining revenues, to DC and Virginia soon.
The media keeps playing their marching band tunes.
The Queen of England not involving herself in politics? DUH! She does not want the welfare checks to stop.
USwillWin - judging by your name, I can only presume you live in the US so why do you have so much hatred towards the Queen and Royal family? How does her living off the taxes of her subjects affect you? Perhaps when your country and government are perfect, you will have the right to point fingers and complain about the way others choose to run theirs but until then maybe you should spend your time and energy working to fix problems in your own "neighborhood"
I remember watching her become queen on TV on a 12" black and white TV. with my family. Great story. God bless.
THAT'S A WOMAN?
Meh ......Time for a King.......In a robe of grandeur....with a beard and bad teeth ....
I find this one of the more repugnant remnants of a bygone era. For 60 years a woman who did nothing but be born into a family has been worshiped like a god. Her every whim satisfied , protocol just to look at her and be in her presence. The billions she has and the property. And she has had it for 60 years. 60 years of this, it's disgusting and she will never give this up, never, would you?. Yes it's good to be the queen.. While the world is in financial trouble this woman is driven around in horse draw carriage and lives in castles. A woman who only achievement was birth.
I find it repulsive that human beings are still ignorant enough to bestow these titles of the past and the wealth FOR A LIFE TIME if they choose to a singular individual. Kurtsy or bow and don't look her in her eyes, kiss my American ass.
I get more out of going to theme parks and watching the actions of Eliz I. She actually did something other than being born. ElizII a cartoon.
@ Robert .....HOW DARE YOU disrespect the Queen and her station !! Off with your head ! Just kidding .....I agree ...Don't know why they are hanging on to all this pomp and circumstance......
Hanging on to a bit of history...nothing else. At least she has served a purpose to the British People for 60 years and they continue to support the monarch, which is weard.
I do not think she has damaged her government serving for 60 years as opposed to our monarch covering only 3.5 years!
Actually, the monarchy makes more money for the British government than she costs. All of the revenue generated from the Crown's land goes straight to the British government. If the monarchy were to be abolished, then the land would return to being the private property of the Windsor family, and the British government would lose a very important source of funds. It's fiscally irresponsible to dethrone the monarch!
Also, just because this system isn't the way things are done in America, doesn't make it wrong, just different. The British place a higher cultural importance on tradition and history than we do. Have some respect. We all have bigger things to worry about in the end.
ohhh the leftards are sooooo upset with the queen... is she a threat to you leftards? how so how so?
lol, seems anything that seems better than them calls them to cry "off with their heads!"
Easy enough when one is born into this kind of life. Most of the salary of the working people goes to support the royal family. The best thing they could do is resign or downsize their standard of living. She looks like she is dead in this picture. I don't think the British ever forgave us Americans for rebelling aginst them. Elizabeth II would be our Queen if we hadn't rebelled.
"Give me liberty or give me death"
~ Patrick Henry
Thank you sir ......
I suggest you do some research start here : , scrool down to about half way , also think about it why would tourist go to the UK ? but to see royal owed properties. that they could shut down and not allow the public to see..
The royal family cost the British people around $1.60 each per year, and raise about 3 times that much in revenue. In addition, many of them promote trade and tourism around the world. The queen is head of state or monarch to over 500 million people, and works a 60 hour week. What do you find so objectionable about her?
Whether your factoids are true, you failed to include the lost wealth of the British people who truly shoud own all the vast "royal" property, jewels, cars, carriages, and palaces around the world. If ALL royal assets were sold and the money divided up among the Brits, how much wealth would that bring each of them -- that's the true "cost" to the British people.
Now compare that to what the American president uses: sell the White House, the limos, the security, Air Force 1/2, Camp David, etc. and it would add up to very little in comparison, per capita, to the American people compared to the the waste of the British "royalty." And Elizabeth is not even the political head of state! Brits have been sold this bull about the royals' supposed value to them, and it's all a crock. Off with their pompous asses!
being that she is liveing history , in a good way . I say she has held up well with all that her family has been through , even tho it could match any American redneck family. . if you seen the Kings Speech it touch on the fact that they are first actors that are born into the role, she has been a corner stone of the UK , yes from a time past. some of you haters need to do your research like she don't ride in horse drawn carrige everyday the royal life is a business first and public persona is everything. If you haters would look into what the Prince of Saudi Arabia and other royals of that region have done, the human price that their subjects have been through you might think differently of this lady. as a American, I say God save the Queen.
She presides over a successful theme park, soon to be upgraded by the Olympics. Big deal. I prefer Great Adventure.
time to cast that death mask!
I completely agree with the positive comments that have been made about this great woman. She has served her country well and has been a beacon of light in times of darkness. She has known sadness and joy but her grace as both a woman and a sovereign has never faltered. For all the critics who distain her for a lack of concern about her subjects I say... you judge her unkindly. And for the coming generations that will only know her by her legacy as a monarch and woman of strength and unfaultering grace, let her be remembered with kindness and respect.
a dictator is a dictator
no difference in any of them
take control of everything and tell others this is good
no matter who falls to the ground dead
Forget it. Nothing could make her look good.
some of you here in america complain of taxes and the rich, how would you like to live in england where this woman and her family is in control and has been for a VERY long time and stinking filthy rich. the english are just handing over their money to her.
i thought they said queen not king
im so sad
sorry queeny
There is no one more royal than you. She's no better than you, just richer. The world would be better just to abolish the royalty junk as it only reminds everyone about the millions killed in their names. Think Mrs. Windsor, not Queen of anything.
Remember the QEII skits that Carol Burnett used to do on her show back in the 80's? Man those were hilarious!! LOL! What I'm dying to know is what she actually carries in that tiny little purse!! LOL!
the queen is a great woman, between running the country and keeping the people happy she has alot on her plate, she has the love of her people ( all the monarchs do ) she is well respected amongst her people and you don't get that from doing nothing that is earned not born into , do you see this happening here in the U.S. with our government ( i don't think so ) nobody likes our government or respects it, but in london they do , they are banned together and proud of born down into history monarchs, if they have no complaints why are you all complaining about it, if it aint broke don't fix it..... and besides they loose thier privacy, they have to go to boarding school, learn different languages, they are raised by nannies , they don't have a real relationship with thier families ( it's a cold relationship ) , because everything is pounded into you who you are and who your going to be, so to me that's not a real life because it's not your own your living what everybody expects you to be and that pressure is hard and you have to be a special kind of person for that...
Hey mama, the Queen does NOT run the country. Only thing she has to do with government is getting paid by same. None of this is required, royalty can resign at any time, even to (gasp) marry a commoner.
1. The real name of the Royal Family (before it was changed to Windsor in 1917) is Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. They hail from Bavaria, Germany. Queen Victoria's grandfather was the reigning British monarch, George III, the eldest son of The Prince Frederick, Prince of Wales and Augusta of Saxe-Gotha. Her German-born mother was known as Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. The modern royal family was founded in 1840 when Queen Victoria married Albert of Saxe-Coburg, a Germany duchy.
2. Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, have a great, great grandmother in common: Queen Victoria.
3. Two of Prince Philip’s German relatives invited to the royal wedding (William & Kate) on Friday, Philipp zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg and Markgraf Max von Baden, belong to families, who had many members in the Nazi party.
4. It is well documented that Prince Philip’s sister, Sophia, was married to Christopher of Hesse-Cassel, an SS colonel who named his eldest son Karl Adolf in Hitler’s honour. Indeed, all four of Philip’s sisters married high-ranking Nazis. The prospect of the former Nazis and Nazi sympathisers attending his 1947 wedding to the future Queen of England meant he was allowed to invite only two guests.
5. Nazi links emerged in a book recently that featured never before published photographs of Prince Philip aged 16 at the 1937 funeral of his elder sister Cecile, flanked by relatives in SS and Brownshirt uniforms. Another picture shows his youngest sister, Sophia, sitting opposite Hitler at the wedding of Hermann and Emmy Goering. Philip was forced to concede that his family found Hitler’s attempts to restore Germany’s power and prestige ‘attractive’ and admitted they had ‘inhibitions about the Jews’.
6. Prince Philip also helped start the World Wildlife Fund in 1961 with former Nazi SS Officer Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, who is closely affiliated with the founders of the Bilderberg international power group, and Sir Julian Huxley, Aldous Huxley’s brother, who was also the President of the British Eugenics Society.
7. Prince Charles is a key patron at the Optimum Population Trust. Colleagues include Futurist and top Eco-Fascist James Lovelock, who recently called for the ending of freedom in order that an overriding global power made up of “a few people with authority” can oversee the radical stemming of the planet’s human population in order to combat climate change.
8.Princess Michael of Kent, is the wife of Queen Elizabeth’s first cousin. Princess Michael’s father, Baron Gunther von Reibnitz, was exposed in the 1980s as a former Nazi party member and SS officer. She has a history of racist outbursts.
9. Reports state that the Queen mother referred to black people as “nig-nogs” or “blackamoors”, opposed all forms of immigration. She backed white minority rule in Rhodesia and lamented that former apartheid leader P.W. Botha got bad press.
10. Before World War 2 began, the Queen Mother was a supporter of making concessions to Hitler and the Nazis, a feeling shared by a large number of British aristocrats who admired the way Hitler was dealing with the Communists.
For some 50 years royal documents were held in vaults at Windsor Castle that detailed the abdicated king Edward VIII’s relations with Hitler and the Nazis. They included captured German documents describing the Windsors’ meeting with Hitler in 1937 and plans to restore Edward, the Duke of Windsor to the throne if the Nazis won the war. Some of these documents still remain hidden from the public
Looks like GW Bush in Drag - mercy
That is because they are distantly inbred ,, I mean related.
Queen rules !!!!!!!!! One of the best bands ever !!!