The People’s Monarch
Every picture tells a story, what's yours?
About this project
‘The People’s Monarch’ was commissioned by BBC South East and depicts the late Queen Elizabeth at the time of her coronation and at her Diamond Jubilee. It is 38 square metres and contains 5,000 photos. It’s on permanent display at the South terminal Arrivals Gatwick Airport, after touring the Towner Gallery, the Turner Contemporary and Rochester Cathedral. “A nation’s a soul, a soul is a wheel, with a crown for a hub, to keep it whole – Ted Hughes
The story
Some viewers also used the opportunity to share precious memories of loved ones they had lost. Everyday family snapshots, scans of photos of ancestors or from an era gone by, times of celebration and ceremony or times of trouble and loss, all remind us of our century-old love affair with the camera. But more importantly, this project proves that we do not need to be professional photographers or artists to be recognised or represented in an artwork and that the photograph has a unique and simple ability to speak directly to all of us, no matter of our difference.
5,000 photos collected
5,000
photos collected
Featured stories
Explore
In addition to the permanent display at Gatwick Airport, The People’s Monarch is also available to explore as a huge gigapixel image online in deep zoom. Zoom in and explore the collected stories of all those who took part from the comfort of your phone or armchair. Gigapixels are huge photographic images. They can be viewed on-screen in an interactive format, or as very large format prints with an incredible amount of detail. A gigapixel image contains one billion pixels, which is 1,000 times the size of a one-megapixel image, or equivalent to 1,000 megapixels.
In the news
Evening Standard | 2013
'The People's Portrait'
ITV News | 2013
'The People's Monarch'
Towner Gallery | 2012
'The People's Monarch'
Mail Online | 2013
'A Royal Welcome'
BBC News | 2012
'Diamond Jubilee Photo Mosaic'
Explore our projects
Explore our projects
London Gatwick officially opened as a commercial airport in 1958. It’s the UK’s second largest airport and is a vital piece of national infrastructure that helps drive both the regional and national economy. We are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In 2024 over 43 million passengers travelled through our airport, with access to over 160 short-haul and 54 long-haul destinations, served by 59 airlines. Our vision is to be the airport for everyone, whatever your journey. We’re focused on delivering a personalised experience, that is easy and efficient. At the same time we aim to be the UK’s most accessible airport, prioritising the needs of every passenger and giving everyone an equal opportunity to fly. And for our people we’re continuing to build a diverse and inclusive workplace, one where everyone is welcome.
“Busiest weekend since our launch. Over 10,000 visits across the 2 days.”
Turner Contemporary
“I want this picture to represent our proud multicultural Britain. No matter how much you adapt to another culture, it doesn’t mean you lose your cultural roots.”
Baljit Barlow | Contributor
“We were thrilled that over 25,000 people were able to view the artwork.”
Rochester Cathedral
“Many people submitted family portraits, photos of their ancestors, snaps of important occasions in their lives and of times that made them laugh. Some viewers also used the opportunity to share precious memories of loved ones they had lost.
Everyday family snapshots, scans of photos of ancestors or from an era gone by, times of celebration and ceremony or times of trouble and loss, all remind us of our century old love affair with the camera.
But more important, this project proves that we do not need to be professional photographers or artists to be recognised or represented in a artwork, and that the photograph has a unique and simple ability to speak directly to all of us, no matter of our differences.”
Helen Marshall | Artist | The People’s Picture