Royal Collection
Windrush: Portraits of a Pioneering Generation, 2023
Honor Titus with His Majesty King Charles III at Buckingham Palace during the presentation of Windrush: Portraits of a Pioneering Generation, 2023. Courtesy the artist.
Commissioned by His Majesty King Charles III, Honor Titus painted Delisser Bernard as part of Windrush: Portraits of a Pioneering Generation, a series of ten portraits honoring pioneering members of Britain's Windrush Generation.
Bernard, an RAF veteran who sailed to Britain aboard HMT Empire Windrush in 1948, is portrayed with an emphasis on fortitude, dignity, and reflection. Titus employed the language of classical portraiture while placing Bernard against a nocturnal field, giving the image a sense of stillness and enduring presence.
The portrait entered the Royal Collection and was exhibited at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh, and the National Portrait Gallery, London.
Exhibition history
2023 — Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh2023–24 — National Portrait Gallery, London
Selected references
Royal Collection Trust — Portrait of Delisser BernardRoyal Collection Trust — Windrush portraits
The New York Times — Honor Titus profile