- The sculpture will be unveiled in Dovehouse Green, south-west London.
A sculpture of a 19th Century icon has been condemned as “absolutely horrible” by its grandson.
The model of famous playwright Oscar Wilde will be unveiled in Dovehouse Green, south-west London, close to the writer’s former home.
Wilde’s grandson Merlin Holland, an expert on his relative’s life and work, ridiculed Sir Eduardo Paolozzi’s bronze sculpture, calling it “unacceptable”.
“I am in favour of any kind of innovation in modern art, but I find this unacceptable. It looks absolutely appalling,” he told the Observer.
Mr Holland added that the sculpture bore no resemblance to Wilde and did not represent the brilliance of one of the greatest playwrights in English literary history.
The Oscar Wilde sculpture will be unveiled in Dovehouse Green, south-west London, in the coming weeks
Oscar Wilde, author of The Importance of Being Earnest, died in poverty in 1900, aged 46.
Wilde’s death followed one of the most famous trials in British history and his imprisonment for homosexuality.
Wilde is one of the most famous playwrights in English literary history.
Wilde, who wrote The Importance of Being Earnest, died in poverty in 1900, aged 46.
His death followed one of the most famous trials in British history and his imprisonment for homosexuality.
Paolozzi, the British sculptor who died in 2005, is best known for his 1986 mosaics at Tottenham Court Road tube station and his 1995 bronze of Sir Isaac Newton outside the British Library.
In 1995, the sculptor presented a design for the model to a committee. His argument was that Wilde’s sculpture should be conceptual, rather than figurative. But the sculpture was rejected and a different model was chosen.
The Paolozzi Foundation said in a statement: “The foundation believes that everyone has the right to an opinion, including Oscar Wilde’s grandson. We would also like to point out that the Oscar Wilde Society fully supports this idea.”