David Hockney turned down the Queen

David Hockney has revealed he turned down a request to paint the Queen because he was “very busy”. The 74-year-old told BBC Radio 4's Front Row programme she would make a “terrific subject” but he prefers to paint people he knows.

“When I was asked I told them I was very busy painting England actually. Her country,” he said.

An exhibition showcasing his landscape work is to be presented at the Royal Academy of Arts in London next year. Speaking at the London launch of David Hockney: A Bigger Picture, the artist said: “I generally only paint people I know, I'm not a flatterer really. “I've been requested and it's actually a terrific subject, but I require quite a bit of time.”

via BBC News

Gramilano( Editor )

Graham Spicer is a writer, director and photographer in Milan, blogging (under the name ‘Gramilano') about dance, opera, music and photography for people “who are a bit like me and like some of the things I like”. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy.

His scribblings have appeared in various publications from Woman's Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the ‘Danza in Italia' column for Dancing Times magazine.