Nicola Jane Philipps, sometimes referred to as Nicky Philipps, (born 27 August 1964) is a British artist who rose to prominence in the 2000s as a contemporary

portrait A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...

ist. She painted the first double portrait of Princes

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

and

Harry Harry may refer to: TV shows * ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin * ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons * ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...

in 2010. Philipps was raised by her artistic parents in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

.She is the daughter of Jeremy Hew Philipps (1931–2006), (son of Major Hon. Richard Hanning Philipps (1904–1998) and Lady Marion Violet Dalrymple), by his wife Susan Gundry, daughter of Henry Edward Bowden Gundry. Her father's grandfather was

Laurence Richard Philipps, 1st Baron Milford Laurence Richard Philipps, 1st Baron Milford (24 January 1874 – 7 December 1962), was a British peer. He was a founder and chairman of the shipping company Court Line. Philipps was the sixth son of Reverend Sir James Erasmus Philipps, 12th ...

. Her studio is located in

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...

, London, England. In between portrait commissions, Philipps paints

still life A still life (plural: still lifes) is a work of art depicting mostly wikt:inanimate, inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which are either natural (food, flowers, dead animals, plants, rocks, shells, etc.) or artificiality, m ...

s and

landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...

Portraits

Philipps was commissioned in 2002 to paint a large composition of

Ken Follett Kenneth Martin Follett, (born 5 June 1949) is a British author of thrillers and historical novels who has sold more than 160 million copies of his works. Many of his books have achieved high ranking on best seller lists. For example, in the ...

surrounded by characters from his novels. In 2005 Philipps was one of two portrait painters whose paintings were chosen to hang at the BP Exhibition at the

National Portrait Gallery (London) The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London housing a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. It was arguably the first national public gallery dedicated to portraits in the world when it ...

and the Garrick Milne Exhibition at

Christie's Christie's is a British auction house founded in 1766 by James Christie (auctioneer), James Christie. Its main premises are on King Street, St James's in London, at Rockefeller Center in New York City and at Alexandra House in Hong Kong. It is ...

. In 2012 Philipps was commissioned by

Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...

to paint a portrait of H M The Queen for the first class stamp, for the stamp series celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Coronation. This was the first portrait to be commissioned by

, and has been gifted to The Queen to hang as part of the

Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...

. Originally intended to be a head and shoulders portrait, it was Philipps' decision to paint a life size, full length figure and include Her Majesty's four dogs. In early 2008 Philipps was commissioned by The Trustees of the

to paint a portrait of Princes

and

, sons of

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...

and

Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

. Her double-portrait of the brothers was unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery in London, on 6 January 2010. The two royals are painted wearing the dress uniform of the

Blues and Royals The Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons) (RHG/D) is a cavalry regiment of the British Army, part of the Household Cavalry Regiment. The Colonel of the Regiment is Anne, Princess Royal. It is the second-most senior regiment in ...

, one of the

regiments A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

of the

Household Cavalry The Household Cavalry (HCav) is made up of the two most senior regiments of the British Army, the Life Guards and the Blues and Royals (Royal Horse Guards and 1st Dragoons). These regiments are divided between the Household Cavalry Regiment st ...

, in the setting of

Clarence House Clarence House is a royal residence on The Mall in the City of Westminster, London. It was built in 1825–1827, adjacent to St James's Palace, for the Duke of Clarence, the future king William IV. Over the years, it has undergone much exte ...

, their official residence since 2002 and the home of their father, The Prince of Wales. "The first portrait of the princes captures them formally dressed, but informally posed. It is a delightful image which extends the tradition of royal portraiture," said National Portrait Gallery director

Sandy Nairne Alexander Robert "Sandy" Nairne (born 8 June 1953) is an English historian and curator. From 2002 until February 2015 he was the director of the National Portrait Gallery, London. Life and career Nairne is the son of senior civil servant Sir P ...

Exhibitions

Philipps has exhibited in: * Fine Art Commissions, Duke Street, Solo Exhibition * Arndean Gallery, Cork Street, Solo Exhibition * BP Exhibition * Garrick Milne Exhibition,

* Family Exhibition, Arndean Gallery, Cork Street * FAC Annual Portrait Exhibition, Arndean Gallery * 'artLondon' Contemporary art Fair, London * Olympia Fine Art and Antiques Fair * Malcolm Innes Gallery, St James's 1997 * Malcolm Innes Gallery, Walton Street

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Philipps, Nicola Jane 1964 births English women painters Living people 21st-century British women artists 21st-century English women 21st-century English artists