Ian Rank Broadley (British b.1952)

Ian Rank-Broadley is one of the foremost sculptors working today. His effigy of the late Queen Elizabeth II appears on all UK and Commonwealth coinage from 1998. He has numerous other public works, including at the Armed Forces Memorial. Most recently, he created from life portraits of King Charles and the Queen Consort.

"The naked figure, whether in the studio or on the beach, has always fascinated me. It is a subject that everyone can relate and respond to in their own way, often without conceptualising or intellectualising. That is the way I prefer to do it. There is a deeper response to the illusive and resonating qualities of the body in art.

The choice of the male figure / nude as a dominant motif was made quite early when I realised that the female nude had, to a large extent, been robbed of its power by the commercial world of advertising, whereas the male nude still retained a power that could excite, grab attention and shock. The reaction of the spectator to the male figure was stronger, whether out of competition, fear or embarrassment. It proved to be a potent image. For me, the sculptor, this fact reinforced the work with a greater resonance and meaning.”