The sculptor who created a monument to Queen Elizabeth I to mark her 100th birthday while she was still alive has finally revealed his reasons for not depicting the Queen on horseback for his creation.
The thing to tell about this is that many critics started saying that there was something lacking in the statue. One of the critics is none other than British actress Dame Joanna Lumley.
As many said, they were “sorry” that the Queen “wasn’t on a horse” for the statue because “we all wanted her to be on a horse. We wanted her in Burmese. An equestrian statue, that’s what we wanted. We really wanted to put her on a horse because we know she loved horses above everything else.”
But talked to 68 year old sculptor Martin Jennings daily Mail and claims, “When I was appointed, we came to the conclusion that it needed a single permanent person, not a cavalcade. Mainly because it reflects the Queen as the sovereign, the head of state.”
“If we had put her on a horse, she would have needed to be in military uniform, and that would have reflected only part of what she stood for.”
He also noted that this was something the King “approved” and pointed out that for those who wanted to see horseback riding, there was already one in Windsor Great Park, so he “did not want to repeat that idea.”
So “This is what we’ll have, instead of the queen herself and a lot of horses.”
The one thing he took blame for and admitted not getting right was his likeness in the image. Attempting to explain the big ‘why’ he said, “I was just trying to suggest an idea – the costume, the pose, the head turn – really simple things.”
Plus, “you don’t really worry too much about equality at this stage,” he explained. “The models I was showing have heads no bigger than the tip of your thumb, so I’m not worried about making it look like a queen just yet.” Also, “It is extremely difficult to create this masterpiece. But to create a major monument on the Mall – which I consider to be within the Golden Mile of great British monuments – is an extraordinary honor and a great responsibility.”
Before the signing he also offered the perspective that, “In a way, this is the final marker for the Queen’s reign.”
