As well as being an honorary partner of The Platinum Jubilee Pageant, Sotheby's will present a month-long program of exhibitions and events marking this joyous national milestone, which will complement our traditional marquee art auctions this summer. Covering the visual, performing, literary and culinary arts and providing a platform for the next generation of artists, the Jubilee season will showcase the breadth, diversity and excellence of British creativity. The galleries will be occupied by specially curated exhibitions of royal portraits, rare aristocratic jewels and important manuscripts, including works on loan from prestigious private collections from 28 May to 15 June. Alongside the exhibitions, visitors will be welcomed in a rich program of conferences, debates and musical and dramatic performances. These will focus on the themes of arts and creativity, history and youth and the future. In conjunction with the Jubilee, Sotheby's will also be holding “British Art: The Jubilee Auction” on 29 June, a sale dedicated to the best of British art, from the Old Masters, through the giants of the 20th century to some of the greatest living artists still working today. As part of Sotheby's support of the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, the sale will include a one-of-a-kind new work by The Queen donated by Chris Levine, with proceeds benefiting the Pageant. Further details on the Auction Highlights will be announced in due course.
In the last 500 years, royal portraiture has been a tradition long-standing, allowing monarchs to present the image they wanted their subjects to perceive. Each captivating portrait tells the story of the subject while also providing an insight into the relationship between artists and patrons. This exhibition of portraits loaned from prominent country houses across the UK will feature the likenesses of the larger-than-life Tudors, the dynasty that first brought this art of imagery to the fore – right through to today's modern depictions of royalty. The exhibition will feature portraits of each of Britain's seven regnant queens, headed by the iconic Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I, on loan from the Woburn Abbey collection.
The famous painting commemorates the defining moment of Elizabeth I's reign, the failed invasion of England by the Spanish Armada in 1588. Complete private collection of three versions painted in that same year, the painting encapsulates the aspirations of the nation in a watershed moment in history, while also carefully spreading a majestic display of female power and majesty. The famous Woburn Abbey collection is one of the finest in private hands – including masterpieces by Rubens, Van Dyck, Canaletto, Reynolds, Gainsborough and Rembrandt.
© Private Collection
From Queen Elizabeth I, to her namesake Queen Elizabeth II, is a richly colored 80s Andy Warhol portrait that is equal parts glamorous and commanding; perfectly representing the global age and “celebrity” in which he has reigned. The starting image of the work is the official photographic portrait made during the Queen's Silver Jubilee a decade earlier, reinterpreted in an intensely vibrant artist's palette as part of a series entitled “Reigning Queens”.
