LONG LIVE THE GREEN FOR JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS
Artist Pauline wows TV star Grayson Perry with plant tribute to monarch
IT’S the Jubilee weekend and some parts of Scotland are awash with Union flag bunting and corgi cupcakes.
Others are turning their backs on the celebrations. Glasgow councillors came under fire for not organising an official event to celebrate the Queen’s 70 years on the throne.
In Edinburgh, parades and concerts being held in London will be shown on giant screens in Princes Street Gardens.
Beacons will be lit at venues across the country while there are local events in rugby clubs, community halls and libraries.
In other areas it’s fallen to individuals to make an impact with shop windows and other displays. We meet some of them.
HERE are the queen’s most famous symbols as you have never seen them before. Pauline Farrar has created a crown, throne and even a handbag out of succulents to celebrate the Jubilee.
Her plant-based masterpieces are on display on the front steps and window ledges of her Edinburgh flat.
And as well as delighting passers-by in the capital’s New Town, they have caught the attention of Grayson Perry.
Her succulent throne appeared on TV hit Grayson’s Art Club last week. “He loved it and wanted to have it on the show,” she said.
Pauline, 58, has the nervous condition Guillain-Barre Syndrome and is housebound. She started gardening so people would stop and chat – and her Jubilee display has been the perfect conversation starter. “Back in January I thought I would make the coronation my next theme,” she said.
“I started collecting bits and bobs – Barbie in her carriage, a china corgi, a golden teapot. I’ve even got some original bunting from the coronation. I wanted to look at the Queen and what she represents, so of course there’s a throne and a crown. I even added a handbag.
“So many people want to stop and speak to me about the Queen, how much they like her. I spend so long inside that this has really helped with my isolation and getting people talking.”
Pauline, who was a goldsmith before she lost the use of her hands and feet, also admires the Queen.
She said: “I think there’s a lot to respect there, as a
woman she is amazing, everything she has achieved in her lifetime.
“And the Jubilee is great fun. Not many people will be able to celebrate 70 years of the same monarch.”
Pauline’s extraordinary living throne, which took six weeks to assemble, will remain on her front step until December. It will then be taken to Birmingham, where it will be part of Grayson Perry’s exhibition at the Midland Art Centre.
She is anxious about letting go of the throne, which is made from 400 succulents. “I am nervous about where they will put it in the gallery – it needs a lot of light. I wanted to ask if any of the curators are green fingered,” she added.
It’s a shame, she says, that there’s not been more effort to celebrate the Jubilee in the capital.
“It doesn’t take much,” she said. “And it cheers up the city.”