Duchess of Cambridge

Oh dear. I like it.

nanaejthe Henry was excellent. Interesting and rather moving. I had wanted to see the PPCE but didn't have time.

I love The National Portrait Gallery in particular. I always make a point of going to say hello to Samuel Pepys who I feel I know intimately, having read his diaries.

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2261232/Kate-Middleton-portrait-Now-thats-art-attack-Picture-given-makeover-pranksters-create-alternative-portraits.html

petallus was the Henry good? did not have time for that just had time to look at the Photographic Portrait Competition Exhibits..spent the morning at Tate Modern and then went to Covent Garden..thought there was an exhibition of underground posters at the London Transport Museum..paid to go in only to discover I had got the dates wrong! Still it was fun trying to drive a tube on the simulator!

I was at the National Portrait Gallery on Thursday seeing the Henry Exhibition. Now I'm annoyed I didn't know the portrait was there. I would have liked to have seen it.

I suppose I would say, from having seen it briefly, that it did not give much of a hint of what Kate might be like as an individual person. It did not look awful, I knew it was Kate but it was not a 'wow' picture!

I'm definitely starting to like it. In hundreds of years time it will look right in a royal portraits collection.

It's in the style of this type of portrait

You have to remember, it's not only been painted for today.

Haha! I saw it yesterday! Had an hour to kill before meeting friends for supper in St Matin's Lane so popped into the National Portrait Gallery to see a photo exhibition and there, en route to photos, was Kate's portrait. I had no idea it was 'just launched' and walked passed it without much of a glance (us Republicans are like that!) but it looked very ordinary and did not make me want to stop and look!

ps despite not being a monarchist I did stop to look at a photo of HRH Brenda & her ladies in waiting from the coronation..the dresses were fascinating!

Plenty of portraits in profile crimson think of all the Renaissance ones, especially the Piero della Francesco one of the Duke who chopped the lump out of his own nose so he could see across it in battle. And there's the beautiful Sargent of the pale lady against a dark background. A full face like this one is really difficult to pull off, the face just goes flat.

And better slightly in profile as well I think; or don't they do portraits in profile?

Agree with all of the above. The portrait is stilted, dull, lifeless and makes her look older. Did he paint what he saw or what he expected a royal to be?
Such a shame as in real life she's gorgeous with a face full of youth and life.

So right, Granny23

The artist was explaining that he originally did a non-smiling portrait, changed his mind and repainted the mouth to a smile. I think this is where the problem lies with the portrait - unsmiling eyes with no crinkles round them make the smile look false.

Jings I also see shades of the Mona Lisa.

I am guessing that the artist is not incompetent but was trying to produce something different to what you get in the usual photos of the Duchess.

Notice on Facebook the portrait got 35,500 thumbs up and only 6,500 thumbs down.

When I first saw it, I thought it was a soft focus photograph, (I have the greatest admiration for portrait painters - it is the most difficult of genres) but that is not what you want when you look at a portrait. It's definitely a portrait of two halves. If you cover up the mouth, the eyes look very sad and old and flat. Broader brushwork would probably have given it a bit more character and sparkle - it lacks sparkle.

I see what you mean, grannyknot!

I've still got it wrong!

AnnMaria. Soz.

I agree with annMarie. Very odd to change the eye colour!

Yes, she's probably amazed by how awful it is!

I'm coming round to it! It probably looks better "in the flesh".

She says it is "amazing". (?!)

It's a bit chocolate box isn't it? She looks a bit smug too.

anno I clicked on the link to read the review and the pic of the reviewer caught my eye and the first thing I thought was "Crikey you've no room to talk". If I was her, I'd get a new photo for my byline before I commented on anyone else's reproduced appearance