The Work of Art
In May of 2000 Lucien Freud requested that he be allowed to paint his queen, Queen Elizabeth II. She consented, and, by the end in December of that year, the small, six by nine inch painting was finished. Who knew that such a little thing could cause so much controversy? The reason for this was that Freud show the queen as a queen as never been shown before. She looked imperfect and old. This made some very angry. One newspaper even said he should be "locked in the Tower" for it. Freud’s response was only that his painting, like many of the modern style, was meant to make people confront the truth and the truth is that Queen Elizabeth II is no longer a young woman. He was only trying to show her as she really is, a definite change from the norm. Whether this is appropriate for a monarch or not is still being debated but, nevertheless, it will still probably be displayed in the permanent collection at the Queen's Gallery in Buckingham Palace.
The Queen
Queen Elizabeth II was born in London on April 21 1926. She was the first daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, so when her father died on February 6, 1952, she ascended the throne. Her coronation was on June 2, 1953. on November 20, 1947, she married Philip Mountbatten, her 4th cousin, and had four children. Prince Charles, now the Prince of Wales and heir to the throne, was born in 1948. Princess Anne, now the Princess Royal, was born in 1950. Prince Andrew, now the Duke of York, was born in 1960. Prince Edward, now the Earl of Wessex, was born in 1964. 2002 was her 50th year on the throne and she is still going strong.
