For centuries, Frederiksborg has provided the setting for portraits of Danish kings and queens, and since the late 19th century, The Great Hall has been dedicated to Christian IX, known as the “father-in-law of Europe”, and his Glücksburg descendants. Here hang some of Denmark’s best-known royal portraits, painted by artists including Laurits Tuxen, Otto Bache and Preben Hornung.

On 25 September 2026, a new work joined their ranks with the unveiling of the first official painted portrait of King Frederik X. The portrait was created by acclaimed Danish artist Cathrine Raben Davidsen. Measuring 240 × 140 cm, it was painted specifically for The Great Hall and hangs three metres above the floor.

In creating the portrait, Raben Davidsen drew inspiration from both the gilt leather and the tapestries in The Great Hall, adding another layer to the natural setting behind The King. First official painted portrait

View the portrait from the right, the left and straight on. The King hangs high above you, and to explore the artist’s brushwork in detail, you will need to come closer – or zoom in on a photograph. Just remember that the portrait was created to be seen from a distance, three metres above the floor.

Exhibition of studies and the artistic process

To mark the unveiling of the new portrait, a new exhibition invites you into the process behind its creation.

Through photographs, drawings and painted studies, you can follow the journey from the earliest studies to the finished work and discover how the portrait gradually took form – and how Raben Davidsen worked with colour, atmosphere and detail to create her artistic interpretation of Denmark’s King.

The exhibition also features a film documenting the creation of the portrait, produced by Anja Hauberg Kaalund. You can watch it here too.

The exhibition of studies is on view until 28 February 2027.

Admiral and monarch

Artist Cathrine Raben Davidsen has painted Frederik X as an admiral in the dark blue full-dress uniform of the Royal Danish Navy. The double-breasted jacket has gold-coloured buttons and epaulettes with four stars. The King wears the Order of the Elephant, Denmark’s highest order of chivalry, on its pale blue sash. Around his neck is the Grand Commander’s Cross of the Order of Dannebrog.

On his chest is a selection of The King’s Danish decorations, together with the breast stars of the Order of the Elephant and the Order of Dannebrog. The silver, eight-pointed breast star of the Order of the Elephant is worn uppermost. At its centre is a gilded medallion with a silver cross on a red ground, surrounded by a silver laurel wreath. Below it, The King wears the breast star of the Order of Dannebrog – a silver eight-pointed star bearing a white enamelled cross edged in red enamel.

The full-dress uniform also includes The King’s sabre, worn in its scabbard on the ceremonial sword belt. The sabre belonged to The King’s maternal grandfather, King Frederik IX, and was given to The King by Queen Ingrid in 1997. In this way, the attire connects The King’s military rank with his role as head of state and with the history of the Danish Royal House.

Brushstrokes and transparent layers

In The King’s trousers, transparent layers lie one over another, allowing background and figure almost to merge. The figure appears and disappears at the same time. This is characteristic of Raben Davidsen’s wider painting practice and reflects her interest in transformation: the body and identity as something not static, but in a constant state of change. First official painted portrait…

Several details connect past and present. The daisies are a tribute to Queen Margrethe, known as “Daisy”, creating a personal and dynastic connection between the former and current monarch. Together with the oak, one of Denmark’s national trees, and the landscape inspired by Kongsøre Forest, the daisies link The King’s own story to the long history of the Danish royal line.

The King is immediately recognisable in the portrait, yet visible brushstrokes and transparent layers give the painting a free and open expression. The face and torso, in particular, appear precisely and carefully rendered in thicker layers of paint. The face is made up of broader strokes that come together when seen from a distance. Viewed at close range, however, a tension emerges between figuration and the dissolution of form.

Experience the portrait in The Great Hall, where it was created to be seen from a distance. Try to catch The King’s gaze. Perhaps you will sense the gravity and gentleness in his expression as you meet the gaze of Denmark’s King in The Great Hall.

About Cathrine Raben Davidsen

Cathrine Raben Davidsen (b. 1972) is one of the leading Danish artists of her generation. She trained at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and has also studied at art academies in Italy and the Netherlands.

Over more than 25 years, she has built an extensive and diverse body of work spanning painting, drawing, printmaking, ceramics, textiles and installation. Her work is characterised by a personal and poetic visual language in which references to art history, literature and mythology meet explorations of nature, transformation, memory and the human existential relationship with the world.

Cathrine Raben Davidsen has exhibited widely in Denmark and internationally and has had major solo exhibitions at venues including Copenhagen Contemporary, Horsens Art Museum, GL STRAND, Rudolph Tegner’s Museum, CLAY Museum of Ceramic Art Denmark and Kastrupgårdsamlingen. Her retrospective exhibition Let Everything Happen to You was shown at Copenhagen Contemporary in 2024 and subsequently at Horsens Art Museum.

Her work is represented in numerous public and private collections, including the National Gallery of Denmark, the New Carlsberg Foundation, Trapholt, Horsens Art Museum, Kunsten Museum of Modern Art Aalborg and CLAY Museum of Ceramic Art Denmark. She has received numerous awards and grants and was appointed a Knight of the Order of Dannebrog in 2015.

Admiral og majestæt
Billedkunstner Cathrine Raben Davidsen har malet Frederik 10. som admiral i Søværnets mørkeblå gallauniform. Den dobbeltradede uniformsjakke har guldfarvede knapper og på skuldrene epauletter med fire stjerner. Kongen bærer Elefantordenen, Danmarks fornemste ridderorden, i det lyseblå ordensbånd. Om halsen bæres Dannebrogordenens Storkommandørkors. På brystet ses et udvalg af Kongens danske dekorationer samt Elefantordenens og Dannebrogordenens bryststjerner, Elefantordenens bryststjerne i sølv med otte stråler bæres øverst. I midten af stjernen er en forgyldt medaljon med et kors af sølv på rød bund omgivet af en laurbærkrans af sølv. Nedenunder bærer Kongen Dannebrogordenens bryststjerne – en stjerne af sølv med otte stråler belagt med et hvidemaljeret kors med kanter i rød emalje.

Til gallauniformen hører også Kongens sabel, der sidder i sin skede på det ceremonielle livgehæng. Sablen tilhørte Kongens morfar, Frederik 9. og blev i 1997 givet til Kongen af Dronning Ingrid. Påklædningen forbinder på den måde Kongens militære rang med rollen som statsoverhoved og kongehusets historie.

Penselstrøg og transparente lag
Ved Kongens benklæder kan man se, hvordan transparente lag ligger oven på hinanden, og hvordan baggrund og figur nærmest smelter sammen. Figuren træder på den måde frem og forsvinder på samme tid. Det er karakteristisk for Raben Davidsens øvrige maleri og hænger sammen med hendes interesse for det foranderlige: Kroppen og identiteten som noget, der ikke er statisk, men befinder sig i en stadig transformation.
Flere detaljer binder fortid og nutid sammen: Margueritterne er en hilsen til Dronning Margrethe og skaber en personlig og dynastisk forbindelse mellem den tidligere og den nuværende regent. Sammen med egetræet, et af Danmarks nationaltræer, og naturen ved Kongsøre Skov, der er en del af inspirationen til naturen i baggrunden, er margueritterne med til at knytte Kongens egen historie til den lange kongelige slægtshistorie.

På portrættet er Kongen umiddelbart genkendelig, men synlige penselstrøg og transparente lag giver portrættet et frit og åbent udtryk. Især ansigtet og Kongens overkrop synes at være præcist og detaljeret beskrevet i tykkere malingslag. Ansigtet består af grovere malingsstrøg, der samler sig, når man betragter på afstand. Men går man tæt på maleriet, kan man se, hvordan der er en spænding mellem figuration og formens opløsning.

Om Cathrine Raben Davidsen
Cathrine Raben Davidsen (f. 1972) er en af sin generations markante danske billedkunstnere. Hun er uddannet fra Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi og har desuden studeret ved kunstakademier i Italien og Holland.

Gennem mere end 25 år har hun opbygget et omfattende og alsidigt kunstnerisk oeuvre, der spænder over maleri, tegning, grafik, keramik, tekstil og installation. Hendes værker er kendetegnet ved et personligt og poetisk billedsprog, hvor kunsthistoriske, litterære og mytologiske referencer møder undersøgelser af natur, transformation, erindring og menneskets eksistentielle forhold til verden.

Cathrine Raben Davidsen har udstillet bredt i Danmark og internationalt og har haft større soloudstillinger på blandt andet Copenhagen Contemporary, Horsens Kunstmuseum, GL STRAND, Rudolph Tegners Museum, Clay Keramikmuseum Danmark og Kastrupgårdsamlingen. Hendes retrospektive udstilling Let Everything Happen to You blev i 2024 vist på Copenhagen Contemporary og efterfølgende på Horsens Kunstmuseum. Hun er repræsenteret i en lang række betydelige offentlige og private samlinger, herunder Statens Museum for Kunst, Ny Carlsbergfondet, Trapholt, Horsens Kunstmuseum, Kunsten Museum of Modern Art og Clay Keramikmuseum Danmark. Hun har modtaget en række priser og legater og blev i 2015 udnævnt til Ridder af Dannebrog.