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The Canadian Diamond Jubilee Portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
During the 2010 Royal Tour of Canada, Mr. Richards oversaw and directed a series of photographs that were taken of Her Majesty by photographer Michael Bedford. He also had an audience with Her Majesty where his concept for the painting was discussed. These photographs and discussions formed the basis of the painting.
The portrait, including the custom-built frame, measures approximately 328 by 224 centimetres. The painting is made of acrylic paints on cotton canvas, while the frame is made of gessoed solid basswood water gilded using 1,000 sheets of 23K gold leaf.
The painting depicts Her Majesty The Queen standing in front of an arched doorway in Rideau Hall, with a portrait of her great-great grandmother, Queen Victoria—the only other Canadian monarch to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee—in the background. Her Majesty is wearing a white dress with a chiffon skirt and beaded bodice and carries white satin gloves in her hand. The Queen is wearing her Canadian honours, a diamond tiara, earrings, bracelet and a three-strand festoon necklace.
The creation includes a number of elements based on objects that can be found at Rideau Hall and objects that represent aspects of Her Majesty’s 60 years of service as Canada’s Head of State. For example, resting against two Victorian ink pots is a copy of the British North America Act, 1867, signed during Queen Victoria’s reign which was repatriated and became the Constitution Act, 1867 in 1982 during Her Majesty’s reign; a pink rose in a small vase is the Queen Elizabeth Rose, introduced in 1954 in honour of the new monarch; the vase is embossed with The Queen’s Canadian Diamond Jubilee Emblem; six direct light sources visible in the painting, one for each decade of Her Majesty’s reign. For more details on the symbolism on the painting, please visit www.canadiancrown.gc.ca
After the unveiling on June 6, 2012, the Diamond Jubilee portrait will be displayed at Canada House in London from June 8-14, 2012. It will then return to Canada and be installed at Rideau Hall. The painting is being transported by air by the Department of National Defence through previously scheduled flights. In addition, through private sector donations, the not-for-profit RCMP Foundation is covering the costs associated with the ground transportation and the presentation of the portrait at Buckingham Palace and at Canada House.
The portrait of Her Majesty is the third painting commissioned by the Government of Canada during The Queen’s reign. Previous paintings were done by Canadian artists Lilias Torrance Newton (1957) and Jean-Paul Lemieux (1979).
