Figure of the Day: Princess Margaret's "Martian in Repose," 1957

Martian in Repose, 1957

Always on the cutting edge of both fashion and the arts, Princess Margaret, after the accession of her sister, Elizabeth, as Queen, turned her attention to a career as a sculptress.  After attending various instructional workshops at the Staffordshire and Chelsea porcelain factories, Princess Margaret Rose created her first masterpiece.

She modeled this portrait head after photos of Wallis Simpson.  A masterpiece of peridot and kelly green enamels over hard-paste porcelain, the work was quickly received by the Royal Academy where it was exhibited accidentally under the wrong title.  The Princess had titled the work, "Coronation of Aunty Wallis." However, some confusion ensued when the Royal Academician responsible for the exhibit commented quietly, "it looks like a martian's nightmare." The secretary  typing the exhibition notes mistakenly labeled the piece, "Martian in Repose"--a name which has endured to this day.

APRIL FOOLS!

My mother made this as a child in school after her original art project had been accidentally broken.  Today, it lurks in then shadowy cabinets of their home and my father, it seems, tries to frighten my mother with it from time to time.