Memorials and tributes are expected around the world next year to mark the 20th anniversary of Diana, Princess of Wales’s death, but perhaps one of the most ill-conceived is that of a proposed memorial of the late Diana riding a horse upon an overturned car in Trafalgar Square.
The Danish artist Poul R. Weile says he needs £430,000 in public donations to fund the project. Once the funding is secured, he will approach the proper people to have the monument installed.
In a macabre turn, the base of the memorial would be an overturned car. Diana was tragically killed in a car accident in Paris on 31 August 1997; an accident that also killed, Dodi Fayed, and the driver, Henri Paul. The untimely death of the “People’s Princess” sparked an unprecedented public outpouring of grief.
The wax prototype shows a woman with her arms spread open. Weile told The Sun that it will show an “active, proud, and confident woman.”
“The equestrian statue of Lady Di honours a woman who, through her active efforts, worked tirelessly to improve the lives of many challenged and underprivileged people around the world.”
Equestrian statues are generally rare and reserved for only a select few, including heads of state or military personnel. A woman on an equestrian statue is even rarer – according to The Sun, only 36 exist in the world.
“It’s a very complicated piece of work and it has many interpretations that you could put on it…like for instance, the fragility of the cars that are carrying the entirety of the statue,” Weile said.
Kensington Palace will, of course, offer a more tasteful tribute to the memory of Diana.
There are plans to plant a “White Garden” next spring that will bloom with some of Diana’s favourite flowers. A fashion exhibit will go on display at the Palace as well, highlighting some of the fashion maven’s most iconic pieces.
I cannot think of a more tasteless memorial to Diana – sounds to me like a Danish “artist’ that simply wants publicity.
I confess that in laters years I was not a fan of Diana but she deserves a better memorial than this. To me it is totally tasteless. Secondly Diana did not ride and did not much like horses.
I hope that if tasteless and blasphemous people give this lunatic fringe sculptor the money to build his “statute,” that Parliament out of respect for the dead denies it anywhere within Britain to be built. And, I would hope that Prince William and Harry make the case most forcefully. Shameless blasphemy. The White Garden sounds like a fitting another Memorial for Princess Diana.
How tacky!! Heavens above! The woman made a significant positive contribution to the way in which the masses perceive the Royals. The Memorial Garden is infinitely more appropriate than the appalling suggestion by the Danish “artist”.
We loved our Diana – she deserves only the best!