Andy Warhol’s Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom (FS II.334) is part of his celebrated Reigning Queens portfolio, created in 1985. This silkscreen print depicts Queen Elizabeth II in Warhol’s iconic pop art style—vivid, bold, and unmistakably modern. The image is based on an official photograph of the Queen taken by Peter Grugeon in 1977 for her Silver Jubilee.
In this work, Warhol transforms a symbol of traditional monarchy into a vibrant contemporary icon. The Queen’s portrait is overlaid with blocks of electric color—magenta, turquoise, and royal blue—accentuating her regal features while simultaneously flattening them into the graphic language of celebrity culture. The use of silkscreen printing, a hallmark of Warhol’s technique, introduces both repetition and variation, blurring the line between fine art and mass production.
FS II.334 captures Warhol’s fascination with fame, power, and image. By placing Queen Elizabeth alongside pop culture figures like Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley, Warhol reimagines the monarch as part of the global pantheon of icons shaped by media and mass consumption.
Part of a limited edition of 40 screenprints, Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom (FS II.334) stands today as a vivid dialogue between tradition and modernity, authority and glamour—an enduring example of Warhol’s ability to redefine portraiture in the 20th century.