‘She sat for him 12 times’: The Nigerian artist who made a bronze sculpture of Queen Elizabeth II with her face on the front of a jet plane has told how she thought she’d met the monarch ‘a few weeks ago’.
But in reality, she said, she had been invited to meet him by the late Nigerian leader, President Olusegun Obasanjo, when the former head of state visited London to witness the unveiling of the statue.
When the former monarch’s face was added, the statue, titled “Elizabeth II: Her face on the front of a jet plane”, was finished.
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The statue is the product of the work of artist Oluwole Akinwunmi
She sat for him 12 times: Oluwole Akinwunmi, who created the sculpture, sat for Queen Elizabeth II 12 times over a three-year period
Queen Elizabeth II’s face was added to the artwork: Akinwunmi said she was amazed after sitting for over a year for the monarch
The bronze sculpture is said to be the largest replica of the Queen’s face ever created.
Akinwunmi, 33, said: ‘I came to London in 2002 to meet President Obasanjo.
‘He called me up and said ‘Let’s come and have a look at your sculptures’. We came from Lagos. He said he would do the design and he took my name and then he called me and said ‘Oluwole’. ‘That’s when we met and sat for him twice. He started with ‘Hello’ and then he finished the thing.’ Queen Elizabeth II’s face is on the front of the £600 (over £500,000) statue.
Despite her popularity worldwide, only a handful of people in the UK are aware of her existence.
Akinwunmi said: ‘In Nigeria, she went to school, but
