The Covid Diaries 78 – Queen’s House, Greenwich

A review of a recent visit to the Queen’s House in Greenwich, including the Armada Portraits and Woburn Treasures. A friendly Front of House team make the visit a real pleasure.

Welcome Back To The Queen’s House

This isn’t the Queen’s House as in Buckingham Palace, and shouldn’t be confused with the Queen’s Gallery. No, this is a house built by Anne of Denmark in a lovely setting in Greenwich. I mentioned it briefly on this walk: it is supposed to have been a gift from James I to apologise for swearing in her presence. Not bad.

These days the Queen’s House is part of Royal Museums Greenwich (RMG). You can visit for free, but will currently require a pre-booked ticket. The permanent display showcases great art and objects from the RMG collection, and there are currently two temporary exhibitions as well. The first is Faces of a Queen, which reunites the remaining Armada Portraits of Elizabeth I. And the second is Woburn Treasures. More on these two exhibitions later.

I had a great time on my visit to the Queen’s House. The Front of House team were very welcoming, so it was easy to have a chat or ask questions. All of the Covid measures were simple and straightforward, and the number of visitors very comfortable. So if you are in Greenwich I would recommend this as a good outing, as well as a fine chance to see some spectacular art.

The Queen’s House: A Historic Space With A Modern Outlook

The last time I went to the Queen’s House was a few years ago. On this visit, I was really excited by what I saw. The Queen’s House team have faced head on the challenge of how to make a historic and aristocratic space relevant. They have done this in a few ways:

1. Accessible Information
   The labels at the Queen’s House are extremely clear, and don’t assume prior knowledge. Each room has information at two levels – what this room was historically, and which theme the room explores. For example the Queen’s Bedchamber became just that during the reign of Charles II, then later the home of the Ranger of Greenwich Park. The room now displays artworks connected to the Enlightenment. There are of course labels for each artwork, telling you what you’re seeing, what we know about the historic objects, and how it connects to the theme of each room. The individual artwork labels stray a bit further into complicated language and concepts, but the overall effect is still that visitors understand what they are looking at and why.
   
2. Tackling Difficult Topics
   The themed rooms really pull no punches. They are really clear about why the rich and powerful were rich and powerful; who is represented in art vs. who is not; and what power dynamics we can see. We are encouraged to think about who is missing, who controlled the narrative, and so on. It’s a great demonstration of how to use potentially problematic works or collections to start a dialogue. It also reminded me of what I saw at the Holburne Museum in Bath.
   
3. Contemporary Purchases and Commissions
   There are some really well-selected contemporary artworks on display which complement the historic collection. A series of photographs of Greenwich schoolgirls ‘fills a gap’ in representation, for example. It’s an entry point for those less familiar with Old Masters, diversifies the voices represented, and builds on the themes of the rooms. I’ve included a few photos at the bottom of the article.

Woburn Treasures

The first of the two temporary exhibitions on display is Woburn Treasures. Woburn Abbey is the home of the Duke and Duchess of Bedford. They are in the midst of a major refurbishment, so have loaned many of their major artworks to the Queen’s House (some Canalettos have also gone to the Holburne Museum).

The Woburn Treasures are integrated into the permanent collection so seamlessly you need to follow the map or look for the little Woburn symbols to understand which artworks are the loans. There are some really great pieces here – a full-length portrait of Anne of Denmark by Marcus Gheeraerts, for example, as well as works by Reynolds, Canaletto, and the very pink Constable you see above.

The Duke and Duchess seem not to have shied away from the same “no holds barred” approach being applied to their art collection. The work by Rembrandt above, for example (The Old Rabbi), has a fascinating story. As a painting, it is a wonderful, dignified portrait of old age. As an object, we learn by reading the label that it has not one but two connections to historic enslavement. Firstly in the sense that the wealth behind the thriving art market came in large part from the labour of enslaved people. And secondly the fact that the mahogany panel was once a sugar crate originating in the Caribbean. Without the labels we would be none the wiser.

Faces Of A Queen

There are three surviving Armada Portraits, so-called because they depict Queen Elizabeth II along with a representation of the failed invasion of the Spanish Armada (naval fleet). Royal Museums Greenwich owns one of the Armada Portraits, and dedicates a space to temporary exhibitions connected to this important work. The last time I was here, I saw Mask of Youth, an animatronic Elizabeth I.

But guess who owns another of the Armada Portraits? Yes that’s right, the Duke of Bedford. So the National Portrait Gallery have obliged by loaning the third one; the first time all three have ever been on public display together. Again there is some thoughtful labelling which explains the portraits as displays of wealth and power; careful PR on the part of Elizabeth; insights into history, costume etc. Seeing them side by side allows you to get close to the detail, but also to see them as more than just paintings. It is worth making the trip to the Queen’s House for this exhibition alone.

Alongside the paintings there is also a brilliant soundscape by Peter Adjaye, A Proposal for Radical Hospitality. We previously saw Adjaye’s work alongside the Toyin Ojih Odutola exhibition at the Barbican. Here, Adjaye has mixed live on-site recordings with various artists, with sounds beamed in from far away over Zoom. The soundscape follows you as you move through subsequent rooms, urging you to reconsider “the idea of an Elizabethan ‘golden age’ from the perspective of the hidden, the dispossessed and the rebels.”

On its own merits: 4.5/5
Woburn Treasures: 4.5/5
Faces of a Queen: 5/5
Implementing Covid measures: 4.5/5

Woburn Treasures until 2022
Faces of a Queen: closing date unclear, check RMG website before visiting

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