A competition for re-presentation: Elizabeth I in contemporary art

In the last few decades, a small but notable number of contemporary artists have embraced an unlikely muse: Elizabeth I, one of England’s first and most famous queens. This article focuses on how three artists – The Singh Twins, Chan-Hyo Bae and Mat Collishaw – have used her image to explore the ongoing effects of empire, trade and colonial exploitation; the relationship between gender, race and power; and the role that art can play in revealing, or blurring, the line between artifice and reality.