Moving Pictures: British Royal Portraiture and the Circulation of Ideas

The Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum opens Moving Images: British Royal Portraiture and the Circulation of Ideas on February 28, 2019. The exhibition will be on view through June 2, 2019. The exhibition features ceremonial and family photographic portraits of the British royal family from the Victorian Age to the present. These photographs show how images can reflect and energize major cultural shifts. 

The royal portraits included in the exhibition are symbolic of the lasting cultural effects of Britain’s move to large-scale production of goods, the growth of the middle class, and related shifting gender roles. Generously on loan from the collection of Jodi and John Eastberg, the exhibition includes works by royal photographers Dorothy Wilding, Cecil Beaton and Marcus Adams.

Using photographic portraits, British monarchs sought to popularize their role as symbols of national vitality and stability. Though the form and aesthetic of royal portraiture beginning with Queen Victoria has changed in the last 150 years, many of the ideas that the images convey remain the same.

This exhibition is curated by Lynne Harper. “What I found striking about the collection,” says Harper, “was that it is almost entirely made up of commemorative photographs, distributed by the royal sitters and bearing their signatures – a common practice with the advent of photography for celebrities and royals alike. Asking the question, ‘Why did monarchs do this?’ led to further questions about how we relate to mementos, the nature of relations created by them and the power those relationships might have over our worldview."

Hours: Wednesday, 1:00 to 5:00 p.m., Thursday 1:00 to 8:00 p.m., Friday through Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 p.m.

Admission: $10/adult, $7/student & senior (62+), free for museum members, children 12 & under and active military. Group tours are available for ten or more people.