Over ten years after tying the knot, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge ’s first official joint portrait has been released. The artwork, painted by award-winning British portrait artist Jamie Coreth, was unveiled Thursday at the Fitzwilliam Museum. The portrait was commissioned in 2021 by the Cambridgeshire Royal Portrait Fund as a gift to Cambridgeshire.
Jamie said it was the “privilege” of his life to paint the portrait. In a statement shared by Kensington Palace, the artist said, “It has been the most extraordinary privilege of my life to be chosen to paint this picture. I wanted to show Their Royal Highnesses in a manner where they appeared both relaxed and approachable, as well as elegant and dignified.”
“As it is the first portrait to depict them together, and specifically during their time as The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, I wanted the image to evoke a feeling of balance between their public and private lives. The piece was commissioned as a gift for the people of Cambridgeshire, and I hope they will enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed creating it,” Jamie continued.
Jamie worked to incorporate the City of Cambridge into the portrait by painting the background with the tones and colors of many of the historical stone buildings that are synonymous with the city, per the palace.
The Duchess was painted wearing her emerald green dress from The Vampire’s Wife paired with what appears to be matching Manolo Blahnik Hangisi pumps. In the portrait, Kate also wore a brooch, which according to The Court Jeweller Twitter account is the Duchess of Cambridge’s Pearl Pendant Brooch.
The royal couple viewed the portrait on June 23 during their visit to the Fitzwilliam Museum. Upon seeing the portrait, William said: “It’s quite big.” The portrait will be on display at the University of Cambridge’s Fitzwilliam Museum for three years, and then exhibited in other community spaces and galleries around Cambridgeshire. The painting will also be loaned to the National Portrait Gallery for a short time in 2023 to mark the gallery’s reopening.