Life Through a Royal Lens

A unique exhibition exploring the royal family’s relationship with the camera

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When

04 March - 30 October 2022

Exhibition information

This exhibition is now closed.

This exhibition is closed.

Life Through a Royal Lens was an exhibition exploring the Royal Family through photography and brings together some of the most iconic images ever taken of the Royal Family to Kensington Palace.

For almost 200 years the medium of photography has created an unprecedented intimacy between Sovereign and subjects. The new display explored the British Royal Family’s enduring relationship with the camera; from Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s patronage of photography during its infancy to lesser known intimate family portraits, spanning from the 19^th century right up until the present day.

The Equanimity/Queen Elizabeth II portrait being hung in a exhibition space.

Image: Equanimity/Queen Elizabeth II by Chris Levine (artist) Rob Munday (holographer) © Jersey Heritage Trust.

Royal life behind the scenes

The exhibition explored the impact of photographer Cecil Beaton – one of the great shapers of royal image in the twentieth century - and his work which redefined modern royal portraiture.

Stunning images of Her Majesty the Queen and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, among Beaton’s most faithful sitters, highlighted how his work influenced public perceptions of the royals.

All images: © Cecil Beaton / Victoria and Albert Museum,

Queen Elizabeth II (b1926) in Coronation Robes, photo Cecil Beaton (1904-80) @ Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Queen Mother Elizabeth in gardens with parasol, black and white photo.

An exclusive look through the lens

Photographs from renowned photographers such as Rankin, Annie Leibovitz, Norman Parkinson and a never-before-seen image of Diana, Princess of Wales by David Bailey were on display at Kensington Palace. For the first time there was also a selection of images taken by Royal Family members themselves, including the work of celebrated photographer and former resident of the Palace, Lord Snowdon, husband of Princess Margaret.

Image: © Princess Margaret, Antony Armstrong-Jones, 1st Earl of Snowdon and their two children Sarah and David. The Norman Parkinson Archive / Iconic Images 2021