DIANA, Paintings – Sanna Halme

I was a child when Diana married in her ivory-white gown, which covered nearly the entire nation. I watched it on TV. Over time, I forgot about her. I didn’t mourn her divorce, nor her death.
I only rediscovered her last year, faded and somewhat sidelined, 22 years after her death. Aha – who was she again? I had become interested in Orthodox iconography, and the once fervently worshiped Diana returned to me as a saintly figure, deserving a closer look.
Martyr princess, Princess of Hearts, like a wonder from recent history borrowed directly from religious iconography.

Suffering repeated itself in Diana’s history. She became the prime target of many people’s emotional transference.
The most pressing question became: What does Diana represent in me?
With stark contrasts of color, and avoiding idealization, I began to create my series about Diana. Over time, almost secretly, I became fascinated with my subject. Diana is beautiful! Diana is multifaceted, unpredictable, a figure that bends in many directions and reflects the deep structures of our culture. Seriously, humorously.

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Princess Diana of Wales (b. 1961, d. 1997) was
the wife of the heir to the British throne, Prince Charles of Wales,
and the mother of Prince William and Prince Harry.
Diana and Prince Charles were married at St. Paul’s Cathedral
on July 29, 1981, and their wedding was watched by over 750 million television viewers.
After Diana and Prince Charles divorced in August 1996,
the media’s global fascination with Diana continued.
Princess Diana died at the age of 36 in a car accident in Paris.
Her funeral was attended by over three million people on the streets of London,
with an additional two and a half billion television viewers worldwide. (Wikipedia)

Translated with ChatGPT