In pictures: Diamond Geezer exhibition

15 May 2012 Last updated at 01:46

In pictures: Diamond Geezer exhibition

Diamond Jubilee picture galleries

An "ironic" celebration of the Diamond Jubilee is being staged by London's WW Gallery. Featuring portraits of the Queen by contemporary artists (including this one by Cathy Lomax) the exhibition is billed as "a playful and indulgent look at our national ambivalence and relationship to the monarchy".

One of the exhibition's aims, says curator Debra Wilson, is to "explore the guilty pleasures of jubilee celebrations: street parties, memorabilia, and all the joys of revelling in the high-camp of that very British of institutions, the monarchy". Boa Swindler's artwork, A Semi Hardy, implies that the paraphernalia surrounding the monarchy makes it a powerful brand.

God Save The Queen is a recent work by Imogen Welch, who works with recycled materials. The images, which recall the artwork for the Sex Pistols' punk single of the same name, show how even those opposed to the monarchy are seduced by its iconography.

James Reid鈥檚 Sex Pistols artwork is referenced even more directly in Sadie Hennessy's God Saved The Queen (Hurrah!) The artwork was created in 2007 and marked the 30th anniversary of the seminal punk hit. The song itself was released in response to the Silver Jubilee.

Dick Jewell's Church and State juxtaposes images of Queen Elizabeth II with those of Madonna and child, exploring the iconography of both subjects.

Sardine and Tobleroni's The Sauerkrauts pokes fun at the House of Windsor's German ancestry by portraying the Royal Family as a Bavarian folk band. The Diamond Geezer exhibition opens at London's WW Gallery on 16 May, 2012.