Changing face of Queen told through art

Pietro Annigoni’s portrait of the Queen from 1954-5 has gone on public display for the first time in 28 years alongside Annigoni’s second full-length portrait of the Queen which was commissioned by the gallery in 1969.

Other artists whose work will be on show include Lucian Freud, Gilbert and George, and Lord Snowdon.

The works range from formal painted portraits to commissioned photographs and from press images to works by celebrated contemporary artists.

It charts not just changing perceptions of the monarchy but also radical changes in art and portraiture during her reign.

Exhibition curator Paul Moorhouse said: “The Queen is the most represented individual in history – but she remains an enigma. All we really have are images. This exhibition explores the creation of the Queen’s public persona and the way such images reveals a world of changing ideas and values.”

The Queen: Art and Image exhibition runs from today until October.

Meanwhile a race being held today in York may determine whether one of the Queen’s racehorses will run a in an event on Derby Day – the start of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

Her thoroughbred, Set To Music, could line up in the £300,000 Diamond Jubilee Coronation Cup if it performs well in the Dante Stakes. The Queen attends the Epsom Derby privately each year, but it is the only Classic she has yet to win.

In 2011 her colt Carlton House was the favourite but her hopes were dashed when it was beaten by the French-trained Pour Moi.

This year’s Epsom Derby on June 2 marks the start of the extended four-day Diamond Jubilee bank holiday weekend, when a host of major events in celebration of the Queen’s 60-year reign are planned.

Dante Stakes preview: Page 20.