Queen Praises Rolf Harris Painting

by: Martin Hofschroer

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Date: Wed, 21 Jul 2010 Time: 3:54 AM - 0 comments

Rolf Harris' art has fans in high places as his "impressionistic" portrait of the Queen received warm praise from the monarch.

The television personality painted the Queen back in 2005 and unveiled his portrait of Her Majesty the following year at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, which is the monarch's official residence in Scotland.

Rolf's oil portrait was in honour of the Queen's eightieth birthday and Her Majesty was present for two sittings, which allowed Harris to finish the painting in his studio two months later.

The Queen described the portrait as "very friendly" after viewing the painting following the second sitting and even seemed to enjoy the process as she remarked that she was happy to sit motionless.

Rolf Harris said: "The portrait I've created aims to capture the Queen's warm and friendly personality, rather than being a very formal portrait focusing more on her official status."

Desmond Shawe-Taylor, Surveyor of the Queen's Pictures, told the Daily Mail that the portrait did a good job of portraying the monarch's sense of fun.

"It's a very friendly, communicative image. It got a real sparkle and a smile obviously and engagement," he said.

Rolf's painting of the Queen is one of over 130 official portraits that have been painted of the monarch throughout her life by artists ranging from Philip de Laszlo to Lucian Freud.

"I feel honoured to have been given the opportunity to paint The Queen to celebrate her 80th birthday. She is an incredible lady and it was a real pleasure to paint her," he said.

The Australian has been painting since his childhood and has embarked on a national tour in celebration of his own eightieth birthday entitled "A Life in Art", which contains new and existing work including Rolf Harris prints, portraits and lithographs.

Art collectors will have to spend large figures of money to buy original works by the octogenarian but they can snap up Rolf Harris prints for a fraction of the price.

Liverpool Hope University honoured Rolf Harris earlier this year by awarding him a Doctorate of Letters.

Rolf told the audience: "The greatest gift my parents gave me was the belief that you can do whatever you want to do, as long as you know what you want to do and do your homework."

The Guardian praised Rolf for having the ingredients for the perfect festival breakfast performer after consistently wowing the morning crowds at Glastonbury, which the entertainer described as the highlight of his career.