Fraser Scarfe, once a humble fish-and-chip shop employee, has found himself living a fairy-tale as the official artist chosen by the King himself to document the recent royal tour of Italy. The 38-year-old Lincolnshire lad, who spent his teenage years serving up the nation’s favourite dish, said the experience was nothing short of ‘amazing’ and it was rather ‘lovely to have been invited’. The King’s tradition of personally selecting artists for overseas excursions has been in place for the past four decades, and Scarfe was the chosen one for the four-day Italian sojourn this April. Scarfe, now a successful painter, author and educator, hasn’t forgotten his roots though, jokingly mentioning he could still ‘wrap a portion of chips from memory’. Utilising modern technology, Scarfe sketched the royal couple on his iPad, enabling him to capture moments swiftly and refine them into more polished artworks at a later stage. From grand state events to intimate moments amidst the throngs of royal fans, Scarfe captured them all. Once his collection is completed, it will be presented to the King for his viewing pleasure, with the potential for some pieces to grace The Royal Collection. Scarfe first caught the attention of the royals in 2023 when he was invited to depict the Coronation, a piece now held in the Royal Collection. Scarfe, a former employee of a chippy in Horncastle, honed his skills at the Royal Drawing School in London, an institution founded by the King in 2000. He now works at the school and regularly showcases his work in Lincoln and London. Despite his success, Scarfe reflects on his modest upbringing with sincerity, confessing that he didn’t have much exposure to arts and culture growing up, making his current position feel like a ‘real pinch-me moment’.
This story was adapted by The Lincoln Post from original reporting by www.bbc.com.
