This exhibition celebrates the royal portraiture of Marcus Adams (1875–1959), who devoted his career to the photography of children. Over a period of thirty years, from 1926 to 1956, Adams created a unique photographic record of two generations of royal children.

The pieces were mostly commissioned by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. Their daughters, Princess Elizabeth (now HM The Queen) and Princess Margaret, attended Adams’s Children’s Studio at 43 Dover Street in Mayfair regularly between 1926 and 1941.

The Queen’s eldest children – Prince Charles (now HRH The Prince of Wales) and Princess Anne (now HRH The Princess Royal) – also attended the studio on several occasions between 1949 and 1956.   

The selected photographs chart the development of the royal children as well as reflecting events in the life of the Royal Family.

These portraits are fine examples of Adams’s work. His technical mastery is second to none, as is his ability to capture a natural pose, a transient expression, a mood.

Visit the Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum website to find out more about the exhibition at this venue.