Kate Middleton on her 40th birthday.Photo: Paolo Roversi
New portraits ofKate Middletonrevealed that she’s ready for a new chapter in her life — one which will ultimately see her crowned Queen.
“I don’t think we have ever seen images of Kate like this before,” Bethan Holt, fashion news and features director forThe Telegraphand author ofThe Duchess of Cambridge: A Decade of Royal Style,tells PEOPLE. “It really shows the palace is using this milestone birthday to set her up for the next chapter in her life.”
The historical references, particularly in the sepia side profile shot of Kate, showing her staring into the distance, her hand intertwined with the ribbon from her off-the-shoulder Alexander McQueen dress, are hard to miss. Not only does it appear to reference the work of Cecil Beaton, the photographer who worked closely with the Queen Mother,Queen ElizabethandPrincess Margaret, but it also has anuncanny resemblance to a picture of Princess Alexandra(who would later become the Princess of Wales and Queen Consort) taken in 1864, the year after she married Edward VII.
Princess Alexandra of Denmark.Alamy Stock Photo
“It shows how aware she is of her position in the family going forward, she knows her responsibility now is to step up in a way that Princess Alexandra did, in the way that the Queen did,” says Holt. “The way that we saw all of them portrayed, it was a sign at the time that they were ready to step into their inherited roles and I think this is Kate saying, ‘I’ve had my decade as a mom and a wife and now I’m ready to be the Queen-in-Waiting that everyone knows is my future.’ "
With her sapphire engagement ring, which previously belonged toPrincess Diana, clearly on display, in addition to a peek of Diana’s pearl bracelet and her Collingwood pearl and diamond earrings, it’s clear Kate intends to bring a little of her late mother-in-law to the role.
“It’s nice that Diana is included because obviously Diana never ended up taking that trajectory that Kate is highly likely to take so it’s lovely that her pieces have been incorporated,” adds Holt.
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Kate Middleton on her 40th birthday.Paolo Roversi
In addition to Diana’s jewelry, Kate also wore a pair of teardrop diamond earrings belonging to the Queen.
“Jewelry is so much about the narrative and passing it down to somebody who will wear it and love it and who will pass it on again,“Annoushka Ducas, one of Kate’s go-to jewelers, tells PEOPLE.
Holt says the simplicity of the jewels selected shows the royal’s modest side. “I think it just shows that there’s a bit further to go, she’s not the Princess of Wales or Queen Consort yet – one day we will see her in her full regalia but for now, she’s showing that she’s ready to step up - these pictures do feel very different but there is a restraint to them also,” she says.
Roversi opened up to Italian newspaperCorriere Della Seraabout working with Kate for the portraits, revealing that she wore little make-up as he wanted her to be “as pure and as contemporary as possible, even more timeless.”
Out of the 250 shots taken, most were in black and white and one image (yet to be revealed!) shows the royal mom dancing an “accelerated waltz mixed with a pinch of rock’n’roll” according to the Paris-based photographer.
“I think it displays such confidence on her part to allow herself to be photographed like this, with her natural flowing hair, little make-up and not all perfectly coiffed,” says Ducas, adding: “He has really captured her natural style, they are very classic but with a contemporary feel - they are quite intoxicating to look at.”
source: people.com
