The Truman Brewery: London

Groundbreaking light artist Chris Levine’s celebrated series of 3D and light-based royal portraits was unveiled in its entirety for the first time from 14–23 March 2008 at StolenSpace Gallery, The Old Truman Brewery, London.

Commissioned by the Jersey Heritage Trust to mark 800 years of the Island’s allegiance to the Crown, Levine was an unexpected choice for a royal portrait. Known for his pioneering light installations rather than portraiture, he was selected for his innovation in image-making. The resulting works, however, earned widespread acclaim. One image, Lightness of Being, was famously described by Mario Testino as “the most beautiful image of Her Majesty I have ever seen — but that’s because I have not shot her!”

Levine spent two years developing the series, presented publicly for the first time in the exhibition Lightness of Being. The original commission, Equanimity, was a hologram installation shown at Buckingham Palace alongside the Queen’s da Vinci collection and Lucian Freud portrait, and is now held by the Jersey Museum. Speaking about the work, Levine said: “The title I chose with the Queen relates to my experiences in meditation, where achieving perceptual equanimity is a step towards enlightenment.”

The exhibition featured outtakes in unusual 3D formats and early light works that led to the commission. After Equanimity was unveiled in Jersey by Prince Charles, Levine realised he was sitting on a collection of extraordinary unseen images — Lightness of Being was his opportunity to share them.

For the show, StolenSpace expanded its venue by 13,000 square feet. The exhibition combined royal portraiture with immersive light installations, using hundreds of lasers and LED works to project imagery onto the viewer’s peripheral vision. Levine referred to these effects as “visual echoes,” similar to the work he had created for Massive Attack and previously shown at the Royal Academy. In this vast setting, Levine sought to create a sensory experience that encouraged viewers “to question the very mode of seeing — and the lightness of being.”