Queen Elizabeth, The Art Critic

Transcript

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

A horse is a horse, unless, of course, it's blue. Queen Elizabeth was on a state visit to Germany this week, and President Joachim Gauck presented her with a painting called "Horse In Royal Blue" by a popular German artist, Nicole Leidenfrost. It shows her majesty as a little girl sitting on a horse, the reins being held by her father, King George. The painting is interpretive. The faces of the horse and humans are indistinct, and the horse is a shade of blue. Her Majesty rather sniffed - strange color for a horse. By the way, she doesn't really sound all that much like Helen Mirren. Prince Philip asked the queen if she recognized her father. Her majesty said no, emphatically, but the painting did not become an international incident. President Gauck also gave the queen a box of marzipan. Perhaps Prince Philip said leave the painting; take the marzipan. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.