{"title":"Roy Strong","description":"\u003cp\u003eRoy Strong’s works delve into the rich tapestry of British arts and culture, exploring historical figures and moments with an evocative eye. From intimate portraits like \u003cem\u003eBryan Organ\u003c\/em\u003e to grand events such as \u003cem\u003eCoronation\u003c\/em\u003e, his writing offers a vivid celebration of heritage and artistry.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eReaders can expect thoughtful reflections on history and biography, blending scholarly insight with engaging narrative. Titles such as \u003cem\u003eThe Elizabethan Image\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Quest for Shakespeare’s Garden\u003c\/em\u003e invite a deeper appreciation of cultural legacy and the stories behind England’s most enduring icons.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"coronation-by-roy-strong-9780008606992","title":"Coronation","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe definitive history of coronations and the Royal Family, from acclaimed writer Roy Strong.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e‘What is the finest sight in the world? A Coronation.\u003cbr\u003eWhat do people talk most about? A Coronation.\u003cbr\u003eWhat is delightful to have passed? A Coronation.’\u003cbr\u003e— Horace Walpole, 1761\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs a boy of sixteen, Roy Strong watched the grand procession carrying Queen Elizabeth II to her coronation. The spectacle was considered the greatest public event of the century. But now, so many years later, many people have little notion of what a coronation is and are unaware of the rich resonances of the ritual, or its deep significance in terms of the committal of monarch to people.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCoronation\u003c\/em\u003e is the first of its kind – a comprehensive history that sets each coronation into its political, social, religious, and cultural context. The story is one of constant re-invention as the service has had to respond to all the changes in fortune of the monarchy or the country: everything from legitimising usurpers to reconciling a Catholic rite to the tenets of Protestantism. It even had to be recreated from scratch after the Restoration of Charles II in 1660. In this way, Strong tells the story of the British monarchy since the tenth century, and looks forward to the coronation of King Charles III.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe musical history alone is one of extraordinary richness – involving Henry Purcell, Handel, Edward Elgar, William Walton – plus the celebratory poetry, the art and the spectacular engravings published at coronations are all explored, as is the more recent role of photographers. The book particularly concentrates on post-1603 developments, including the incredible story of the Stuarts, when the crown jewels used for hundreds of years at coronations were melted down as symbols of the hated Divine Right of Kings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs Charles III succeeds to the throne and preparations are made for his coronation, Strong speculates as to the revisions now called for to its ritual and pageantry to meet the changes in the role of the monarchy in the twenty-first century.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Arotahi Agency","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46627013394668,"sku":"9780008606992","price":39.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/904033482191.jpg?v=1751877803"},{"product_id":"bryan-organ-by-roy-strong-9780500029831","title":"Bryan Organ","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePublished to mark the artist's 90th birthday, this is the first and only book to provide an overview of Bryan Organ, one of the world's great portrait painters.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis book tells the story of Bryan Organ, whose works have been commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery more than any other 20th-century painter. It is itself a portrait, one that draws on his beginnings on the school cricket pitch and at art college as well as his time sketching others in recording studios, on the polo field and at the Elysée Palace. It tells the stories of his most important paintings, his friendship with Graham Sutherland, and his endless experimentation with movement, space and form. For the first time, it offers a contextual overview of his paintings, drawings, prints and sketches from the 1950s to today.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhether painting Prince Charles, Sir Harold Macmillan, Elton John, President Mitterrand or pigeon fanciers Mr and Mrs Sharples, Organ's strategy is to find a point of contact with his sitters and get to know them. As this beautiful book illustrates, his acute powers of observation, his facility as a draughtsman and meticulous painting technique enable him to create a psychological likeness that feels like a real human encounter.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDespite his success, Organ has always shunned the limelight. When his controversial 1970 portrait of Princess Margaret hit the front pages, he found it difficult to cope with the uproar and retreated to France. Some ten years later, his portrait of Princess Diana was slashed by an anti-monarchist, and Organ decided that enough was enough. Since then, he has continued to work quietly, but refuses to be involved in any exhibitions and avoids all press coverage. Organ provided unprecedented access to his entire archive for this book, the only overview of his illustrious career.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46847709315308,"sku":"9780500029831","price":110.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/0ca3cee30b0f937a36a1c1c3a94aab00.jpg?v=1758963999"},{"product_id":"the-elizabethan-image-by-roy-strong-9780300260595","title":"The Elizabethan Image","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe new paperback edition of Roy Strong's popular introduction to Elizabethan portraiture\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWritten for the general reader, Roy Strong’s popular introduction to Elizabethan portraiture synthesises scholarship and research on this subject into a concise introduction to the Elizabethan aesthetic. Strong surveys the entirety of Elizabeth I’s reign from the Procession Picture to the Rainbow Portrait (1600–1602).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA range of social aspects of Elizabethan portraiture are explored, such as patronage, symbolic self-fashioning, Elizabethan pageantry and melancholic humour. Strong reveals the Elizabethan approach to portraiture, while demonstrating a new way to look at these paintings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom celebrated portraits of the Queen and paintings of knights and courtiers, to works depicting an aspiring 'middle class’, Strong presents a detailed and authoritative examination of one of the most fascinating periods of British art.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unknown","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47461529223404,"sku":"9780300260595","price":67.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780300260595-the-elizabethan-image.jpg?v=1774970642"},{"product_id":"the-quest-for-shakespeares-garden-by-roy-strong-9780500252246","title":"The Quest for Shakespeare’s Garden","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShakespeare's potent use of garden imagery has captivated successive generations of readers and inspired the making of gardens across the globe.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLaced with quotations and abounding with illustrations drawn from sources including Elizabethan gardening books, embroidered fabrics and hand-coloured herbals, \u003cem\u003eThe Quest for Shakespeare’s Garden\u003c\/em\u003e tells the story of the Bard's own garden at New Place in Stratford-upon-Avon, revealing its place in garden history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47461614682348,"sku":"9780500252246","price":36.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780500252246-the-quest-for-shakespeare-s-garden.jpg?v=1774973413"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/roy-strong.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}