King Charles today unveiled the first completed official portrait of himself since the coronation at Buckingham Palace and social media is awash with memes likening it to a classic Star Wars scene.
Sci-Fi fans said the King was ‘Hans Solo’d’, referencing a scene in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in which the space pirate is frozen in carbonite due to the red tint covering Charles’ body in the painting.
The portrait was also compared to the villain from Ghostbusters 2, Vigo the Carpathian, a medieval tyrant from the 17th century whose ghost took up residence in his own portrait.
Others joked that the painting looks like it was “attacked by Just Stop Oil.”
King Charles today unveiled the first completed official portrait of himself since the coronation at Buckingham Palace
Sci-Fi fans said the King was ‘Hans Solo’d’, referencing a scene in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in which the space pirate is frozen in carbonite due to the red tint covering Charles’ body in the painting
The portrait was also compared to the villain from Ghostbusters 2, Vigo the Carpathian, a medieval tyrant from the 17th century whose ghost took up residence in his own portrait
Others joked that the painting looks like it was ‘attacked by Just Stop Oil’
The painting, by renowned artist Jonathan Yeo, was created in 2020 to celebrate the then Prince of Wales’s 50th anniversary as a member of The Drapers’ Company.
It shows His Majesty in the uniform of the Welsh Guards, of which he was appointed regimental colonel in 1975.
The red tones that cover most of the canvas are part of Yeo’s signature style and can be seen in his other portraits, including one of Queen Camilla from 2014, which is dominated by blue tones.
The canvas size – framed approximately 2.5 by 2.5 meters – was carefully considered to fit within the architecture of Drapers’ Hall and the context of the paintings it will eventually hang next to.
Yeo had four sittings with The King, starting when His Majesty was Prince of Wales in June 2021 at Highgrove, and later at Clarence House.
The painting was completed by renowned artist Jonathan Yeo (pictured in London in 2018)
A portrait by Jonathan Yeo of Queen Camilla in 2014, when she was Duchess of Cornwall
Charles stands today at Buckingham Palace next to Jonathan Yeo who painted the portrait
The 53-year-old artist said: ‘It was a privilege and pleasure to have been commissioned by The Drapers’ Company to paint this portrait of His Majesty the King, the first to be unveiled since his coronation.
‘When I began this project, His Majesty the King was still His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, and like the butterfly I painted over his shoulder, this portrait has evolved as the subject’s role in our public lives is changed.
‘I do my best to capture the life experiences etched into the face of each individual sitter. In this case, my aim was also to reference the traditions of royal portraiture, but in a way that reflects a 21st century monarchy, and above all to convey the deep humanity of the subject.
“I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to capture such an extraordinary and unique person, especially at the historic moment when I became king.”