Once I was a clever boy learning the arts of Oxford... is a quotation from the verses written by Bishop Richard Fleming (c.1385-1431) for his tomb in Lincoln Cathedral. Fleming, the founder of Lincoln College in Oxford, is the subject of my research for a D. Phil., and, like me, a son of the West Riding. I have remarked in the past that I have a deeply meaningful on-going relationship with a dead fifteenth century bishop... it was Fleming who, in effect, enabled me to come to Oxford and to learn its arts, and for that I am immensely grateful.


Monday 30 September 2024

The Rainbow Portrait


Artnet News has a very interesting article about the now completed restoration of the Rainbow Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I. It is part of the collection of the Marquesses of Salisbury at Hatfield House. One of the most famous images of the Queen it is as much icon as it is portrait, with the royal gown covered in eyes and ears as the monarch holds a rainbow in her right hand. It is one of the most cryptic depictions of the Queen, and the latest research suggests it may well have been painted as a memorial soon after her death. The enigmatic figure of her may be, it occurs to me, how Queen Elizabeth I indeed would have wished to be remembered - all knowing, majestic, perpetually young, virginal and beautiful, but very much an enigma herself. 

The cleaning and restoration work has revealed that over the centuries the colours of the gown have faded and changed significantly. Whilst restoring it to its original tones would be unthinkable in the disciplined world of modern conservation I hope, indeed am sure, that someone skilled in computer imaging has already, or will in the near future, generate a version of what the painting originally looked like for modern eyes to appreciate.




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