To think the new official portrait of King Charles is awful

[Isseywith3witchycats]

the background being the same colour as his uniform means just basically his face is visible it reminds me of the attic picture of Dorian Grey.

No one ever did an uncomplimentary one of the queen even as she got older

It's a great portrait for the leader of a Satanic cult.

"Damn, I mixed far too much red. Oh well, I'll just use it for the background!"

I quite like it. I think his face looks very kind, even though all the red would suggest a different kind of emotion. I find myself thinking about why it's so red, and why he blends into the background.

I can see why it might not appeal to some though, it makes a strong impression.

I think the artist doesn't like him. He's painted him as if he was covered in blood (tampon) and in hell covered by the blood he has on his hands of his treatment of others.. Very appropriate, really.

It's hard to imagine a positive reason for portraying King Charles as a horror movie poster, in a haze of swarming blood, emerging from the gates of hell.

On the one hand, it is quite a flattering portrait of his face, regal and younger than he currently looks. On the other, swimming in blood...

Imagine seeing that for the first time, as your portrait!

The artist (Jonathan Yeo) has a very predictable style, at least in his more recent work, so they knew what sort of painting they were going to get. (Much could also be said of letting Lucian Freud paint the Queen.)

That said, while Yeo is technically proficient, I don't find it very interesting as a painting. If he were actually suggesting that the red were blood and making a statement on Empire, that would at least be a political statement, but I don't think he is. It feels like Charles wanted to make a slightly more daring choice than would be typical, but it doesn't come off right.

(Now, you might dislike Vincent Namatjira's portrait of Gina Rinehart that was in the news, but there can be no doubt that Namatjira was making a statement with it! He did a portrait of Charles, too.)

I really like it.

I 🤔 think it makes him look as if he has entered Satan's inferno,
like that eccentric visionary Arthur Brown rock star
song of the 60s era

The artist (Jonathan Yeo) has a very predictable style, at least in his more recent work, so they knew what sort of painting they were going to get.

Do you think "appearing to be swimming in blood" was part of the expectation? He may well have a distinctive style, but another colour - royal purple, green for Charles love of nature, etc - would not have made it look like a horror movie.

I'm not a royalist (AT ALL) and I really like it.

In fact, the more I look at it the more I like it. It's an excellent painting.

W

Arthur Brown's Fire 🔥 song

I love and find it very engaging. I keep going back to look at it. Portraiture is so interesting.

I really like it.

It's a more contemporary portrait than you'd normally see and all the better for it in my opinion.

I love it. The use of red has multiple historical references as has the dominance of the face and hands, but it is thoroughly modern in style. As someone said upthread, it clearly represents how he wishes to be seen - the man over the trappings of royalty and rank.

Dreadful

Just saying...

It's a very clever future-proofing concept - should it be smeared with red paint by Environmental activists like the Monet in Stockholm or the portrait of Lord Balfour by Pro-Palestine activists - no-one will know.

I like it...not a big fan of the royal family but like the piece. Had a great conversation with my son about it...he was talking all about symbolism and how maybe the red from his "uniform" being the background shows how it takes over his whole life. I thought that was an interesting take on it. I love how art can make people see different things in the same piece. It's got people talking!

I really like it too, I especially love the butterfly

Lol I was about to post this 😂

I think it’s a stunning portrait and usually couldn’t care less about what the royal family do, however they chose a really great artist.

It’s awful.

Not a royalist, but I really like it. A brave choice.

I like it too.

It is really grim isn't it? That artist always blends the subject into the background. Do you think Charles is fond of red? It's horrible and almost gory looking! But as one journalist said, it's a good way of disguising the world cup ears!
I bet you he won't hang it for long. Car boot sale in Dagenham next month? Lol