Royal Artist Details "Unnerving" and "Surreal" Experience of Working With Queen Elizabeth II, Which Could Have Been "The End" of His Career

As Queen Elizabeth II spent seven decades on the British throne, she became known as an iconic figure all over the world. During her tenure, the former monarch's portrait was painted and photographed on numerous occasions. One royal artist reflected on working with the late Queen for a 2004 portrait, noting that the project could have been "the end" of his career.

Photographer Chris Levine's portrait of Queen Elizabeth, titled "Lightness of Being," was commissioned for the 800th anniversary of Jersey's independence from France. "This shot was actually an outtake," Levine told Hello! magazine in 2025. "A couple of years later, I was looking through the work, and thought: 'Wow, that's pretty powerful.' It's the most evocative image of a royal by any artist, and it's become a historic work."

Levine told the outlet, "The commission was to create an image that would celebrate the modern relationship with The Queen after 800 years and into the future." According to Levine—who works with lights and laser scanners—his assistant told the monarch, "Ma'am, it's just like having your passport photo taken." Elizabeth allegedly didn't miss a beat and responded, "One doesn't need a passport."

Reflecting on what it was like to work with The Queen, Levine told Hello! magazine, "On one level, she was just a very lovely old lady, but there was something very special about her."

The artist also spoke to Woman & Home magazine about the unexpected commission, which he reportedly thought might have been a prank phone call, at first. "The week before, it suddenly hit me," he told the outlet (via the Express). "I realized there was a lot of expectation. This could be really good—but if I didn't get it right, it could be the end of my career."

Calling the entire experience "surreal," Levine told the publication, "She wasn't giving anything away, and I realized she'd developed a mechanism where you couldn't tell what she was thinking, because she was meeting people all the time."

The photographer further explained, "I've never experienced that with anyone else in my life. It was really quite unnerving. I kept thinking, 'Is this really happening? Am I in a dream? Is this real?' It felt like I was in some kind of simulation—I was telling The Queen what to do."

Luckily, Levine successfully created a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, which continues to be celebrated two decades later.