The final design plans for a national memorial to Queen Elizabeth II in London’s St James’s Park have been determined by the UK government.
A team led by architect Norman Foster of Foster + Partners, which includes British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare CBE RA, was selected to design the memorial.
The design plans to connect nearby royal gardens with a natural stone path, along with the existing Blue Bridge over the lake in St James’s Park for a translucent cast-glass balustrade inspired by Queen Elizabeth II’s wedding tiara.
Art figures heavily into the project, with Shonibare’s Wind Sculpture to be included and new figurative sculptures of the late Queen with her husband Prince Philip at Birdcage Walk. Alongside the mall, there will be a dedicated gate to Prince Philip and a monument of Elizabeth II.
The team also includes landscape designer Michael Desvigne, who will work in conjunction with the Queen Elizabeth Memorial Committee.
“They will work together to select a sculptor to design the memorial’s figurative element,” the project statement detailed. Adding, “The final design will be formally announced in April 2026, alongside a legacy programme, to coincide with what would have been Queen Elizabeth’s hundredth birthday year.”
The winning project proposal was selected from a shortlist of five designs by the UK government.
Public funds to the tune of £23 to £46 million ($31.3 to $62.6 million) will be used to pay for the memorial.
For his part, Shonibare has long interrogated cultural and national identities in his oeuvre, including a reclamation of monumental sculpture. The artist was awarded the honor of Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 2019.
