Bryan Organ (born 31 August 1935[1] in Leicester)[2] is a British artist considered one of the leading and most innovative English portrait painters of the 20th century.
[3] Organ is also known for landscape paintings, such as St Pancras Station (Leicester New Walk Museum and Art Gallery), and lithographic studies of animals (Tate).
[6] Bryan Organ became interested in portraiture in the mid-1960s, a time when the medium was unfashionable and largely shunned by any young ambitious artist.
[citation needed] For Organ, portraiture was not a separate art: "A portrait is a picture, presenting just the same problems as a still life or a landscape or an abstract.
The portraits of Muggeridge and Tippett, along with a number of studies, were both included in Organ's first exhibition at the Redfern Gallery,which took place in March 1967.
[citation needed] While Organ is best known for his portraits of notable figures and of members of the British royal family, he has also created a diverse body of work outside this subject.
Without the adornments of crowns and elegant finery, these paintings offered a "subtle celebration of the modesty of a modern prince and monarchy", according to Tristram Hunt.
[14] Paul Salmon, a Belfast student aged 20, lunged past guards and cut a diagonal slash in the painting, which ripped all the way down to the frame; he is quoted as saying: "I did it for Ireland.
"[14] Salmon later pleaded guilty to a charge of "causing criminal damage", was sentenced to 6 months in prison and ordered to pay for the painting's restoration.
"[citation needed] The painting was unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery in August 1970 to a storm of publicity, in time for the Princess's 40th birthday.