The King's Tour Artists exhibition at Buckingham Palace celebrates over 40 years of artistic contributions during official royal tours, originating from a 1980 invitation by the Prince of Wales to artist John Ward. Featuring 70 works, many never before displayed, it chronicles the experiences of 42 artists across 95 countries. These artists, including Ward, Susannah Fiennes, and Mary Anne Aytoun Ellis, captured personal impressions of their travels, from royal yacht moments to significant events like the Hong Kong handover. Curator Kate Heard emphasizes the richness and variety of these documented impressions.
Ward never carried a camera but always a small sketchbook, and his work From the Afterdeck of HMY Britannia captured a moment of rest during the fast-paced tour.
This fascinating group of works tells the story of 40 years of official travel and artistic patronage. The freedom given to each artist to capture a personal impression of the countries visited has led to the formation of a rich and varied collection.
The pace of the tour to Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and Jamaica in 2000 meant Mary Anne Aytoun Ellis requested to travel ahead to the Kaieteur Falls in Guyana, which had been allocated just 15 minutes of royal time.
Britannia features also in Susannah Fiennes's watercolour of two royal yachtsmen after the daily routine of lowering and raising the flag during the tour to Hong Kong for the 1997 handover to China, the royal yacht's last before decommissioning.
Collection
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