In the decade since joining the royal family, the Duchess of Cambridge has sharpened her eye for photography, served as patron of the National Portrait Gallery, published her own pictures of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis on their respective birthdays, and launched their hold still initiative during the pandemic. So it’s only natural that for her 40th birthday on January 9th, Kate would forego sitting for a painter and instead hire Italian photographer (and frequent Vogue contributor) Paolo Roversi to do a trio of portraits in Kew Gardens taking photos.
Paolo Roversi
The footage, taken in November, shows the Duchess in a series of ball gowns against a neutral background. In the course of 2022, the portraits will be exhibited in locations “of particular importance” to Kate, according to Kensington Palace. The first, Berkshire, is where she grew up and where the Middleton family still live; the second, St Andrews, is where the future Duchess met Prince William as an art history student; and the third, Anglesey, is where the Duke and Duchess rented a cottage shortly after their 2011 wedding.
Paolo Roversi
The exact locations where the portraits will be exhibited will be announced shortly and are part of a larger initiative by the National Portrait Gallery called Coming Home. While the NPG – which is slated to reopen in 2023 after a major renovation – is closed, many of its treasures are on display in locations across the UK, from Vanessa Bell’s portrait of Virginia Woolf in Charleston to Olivia Rose’s shot of Stormzy at the Museum of Croydon. Roversi’s three portraits of the Duchess will be part of the institution’s permanent collection starting next year.
In the meantime, plan a weekend getaway to Anglesey …