4. Margaret Thatcher Statue by Antony Dufort
The Lady Is For Turning Your Stomach! Here is a nauseating example of contemporary public sculpture depicting one of Artlyst’s favourite subjects. This 7ft 6in statue by Antony Dufort is a full-length likeness which cost 80,000 pounds. It weighs 71 stones (451 kg) and was commissioned by the Advisory Committee on Works of Art in 2003. It was unveiled in 2007. Baroness Thatcher was the first living former Prime Minister to be honoured in such a way by the Commons. In 2002 a marble statue of the former Prime Minister was decapitated after it went on show at London’’s Guildhall.
Antony Dufort learnt to paint and draw from his maternal grandmother Doris de Halpert, a pupil of Sickert. After a successful international career as a portrait painter, film storyboard artist and illustrator he developed a passion for sculpture in his mid thirties. An informal apprenticeship with Remo Fiorini at the Fiorini Foundry helped launch a new career as a public sculptor. He enjoys the collaborative aspect of site specific sculpture and the enjoyment that it can add for local people. In his private work he continues to paint and make small sculptures involving movement and dance. He believes, perhaps unfashionably, that a strong grounding in draughtsmanship is still vital for sculpture as well as painting. He attended New College Oxford, History Scholar 1967-1971, Chelsea School of Art London ,Diploma in Art and Design 1972-1975, Masters Degree in Fine Art 1976, Goldsmiths College London.