Blenheim Palace to Host Iconic Cecil

Beaton Photography Exhibition 

Blenheim Palace will be hosting a new exhibition 'Cecil Beaton, Celebrating Celebrity' from the 17th May until the 1st August 2021.

The iconic images by the British fashion and portrait photographer will be displayed throughout the State Rooms of the Palace.

Highlights include striking portraits of Barbara Streisand, Audrey Hepburn and Marilyn Monroe alongside Marlon Brando, Coco Chanel, Picasso, Andy Warhol and Twiggy.

Cecil Beaton's career spanned five decades, starting with his friendship with the 'bright young things' of the 1920's.

He then moved on to serious images of fashion, theatre, ballet and the social scene of the 30's and 40's, and from the 1950's onwards his career was crowned by becoming the official photographer of the royal family.

Beaton was a familiar guest at the Palace, attending parties and weekend breaks alongside a host of aristocrats, artists and writers.

In addition to his photography, Beaton was also an accomplished artist, a diarist, an interior designer, and an Academy Award-winning stage and costume designer – he won three Oscars for Gigi and My Fair Lady.

The exhibition was conceived in partnership with the State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, where it was first shown. It was selected and mounted by curator Dasha Panaiotti, from the State Hermitage contemporary art department, Hermitage 20/21. 

The first retrospective in Russia dedicated to the legendary photographer, the hugely successful showing in St. Petersburg was organised with the help of the Hermitage Foundation UK, who were instrumental in bringing the exhibition to Blenheim. 

• For more information and to book visit blenheimpalace.com

Issued on behalf of Blenheim Palace. For more information please contact Samantha Vaughan on 07469 129743 or SVaughan@blenheimpalace.com .About Blenheim Palace  

Home to the Dukes of Marlborough since 1705, the Oxfordshire Estate was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

Set in over 2,000 acres of 'Capability' Brown landscaped parkland and designed by

Vanbrugh in the Baroque style, it was financed by Queen Anne, on behalf of a grateful nation, following the first Duke of Marlborough's triumph over the French in the War of the Spanish Succession.

At the time the victory was hailed as the greatest British military success since Agincourt.

Blenheim Palace is also the birthplace of one of Britain's most famous leaders, Sir Winston Churchill and it was his father who described the vista, on entering the Estate from the village of Woodstock, as the 'finest view in England'.

About Hermitage 20/21 

The project's goal is to collect, exhibit and study contemporary art, as well as to build the museum's contemporary art collection. It was launched in 2007. Since then about 40 exhibitions have been organised, in addition, numerous research and educational projects aimed at illuminating major contemporary art trends have been carried out as a part of the project.

About the Hermitage Foundation UK

The Hermitage Foundation UK represents the State Hermitage Museum in the United Kingdom, facilitating cultural exchange and supporting a range of Hermitage activities including exhibitions and loans, acquisitions and a curatorial exchange programme. 

In addition, the Foundation is responsible for the management of the Hermitage's international endowment fund, and for a major publishing programme translating the Hermitage collection's catalogues into English.

Alongside these activities, the Foundation runs a busy Friends organisation that is closely linked to the museum in St. Petersburg and which organises regular events in both the UK and Russia. Visit the Hermitage Foundation UK to explore other digital content: www.hermitagefoundation.co.uk