Portrait Of King Charles III By Jonathan Yeo Horrifies People Online

Early today, on 15 May 2024, the British royal family social accounts posted an image of the first official portrait of King Charles III. Many people on social media found the picture to be quite scary.

The portrait itself was commissioned by the Draper's Company and drawn by Jonathan Yeo, who painted it in between four sittings from 2021 till 2023, according to ABC News.

The portrait itself shows the king wearing a red uniform of the Welsh Guards, of whom he was made Regimental Colonel back in 1975. The surroundings around King Charles' face and body also mirror shades of the same colour. There is also the presence of a butterfly flying over the King's right shoulder, an idea suggested by King Charles himself, according to Yeo during the unveiling of the image.

The butterfly idea was implemented before King Charles' coronation, back when he was still the Prince of Wales. As Yeo explained, originally the butterfly was meant to be a visual tool, but now it could be interpreted as a symbol of metamorphosis, being a visual metaphor for the then-prince turning into a king.

While Jonathan Yeo and King Charles seemed pretty happy with the portrait, planning to display it in Draper's Hall in London, people on social media seem to have a different take on the painting. Many are finding it gruesome and disturbing.

The excessive use of different shades of red and orange seems to have given the viewers of the painting an impression of a hellish background. An uncommon style for a royal figure, to say the least.

In an interview with Mette Skougaard, former director of the Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle, Jonathan Yeo talked about the inspirations for his art. While Mette pointed out that his work resembled the works of Lucian Freud, Yeo responded by saying he was inspired a lot by twentieth-century artists at the Tate Gallery, like David Bomberg, Georges Braque, and Pablo Picasso, all of whom experimented and tried different styles for their paintings throughout their careers. All the painting skills Yeo has, he taught himself through commission work, he said in the interview.

This is also not the first time he has been under the spotlight for a controversial portrayal of an important political figure.

Around 2001, the White House commissioned Yeo to paint a portrait of George W. Bush for their presidential library, according to a recent interview he had with The Telegraph. Jonathan Yeo tried to use this opportunity to create a portrait made out of porn magazines and hoped that the officials wouldn't notice, but after his exhibition of the painting went viral, he was told that the White House didn't want the painting anymore.