Tetra Pak heir donates £10m to Royal Academy’s free art school

A BILLIONAIRE who was spared jail for keeping his wife’s decomposing remains in their home after she died has donated £10million to a free art school.

Hans Rausing, the Tetra Pak heir and one of Britain’s richest men, has gifted the sum to the postgraduate art school at the heart of the Royal Academy.

The institution is the oldest art school in Britain and this year is celebrating its 250th anniversary. It counts among its alumni JMW Turner, John Constable, William Blake, Richard Hamilton and Sir Anthony Caro.

Mr Rausing, who has previously admitted heroin addiction, hit the headlines in 2012 when police discovered the remains of his first wife, Eva, during a search of the couple’s home after his arrest on suspicion of driving under influence of drugs.

Appearing at Isleworth Crown Court, south London, he admitted hiding his wife’s remains under clothing and bin bags in a sealed room inside their £70million mansion.

After his arrest Mr Rausing told a doctor: “I know it sounds selfish, but I just did not want her to leave.”

He was given a 10-month prison sentence suspended for two years for preventing the lawful and decent burial of his wife. He also admitted driving a vehicle while unfit through drugs.

A post-mortem examination found that Mrs Rausing, 48, had traces of cocaine in her system.

The £10million gift comes from the Julia and Hans Rausing Trust charitable fund, which the Tetra Pak heir set up with his second wife, Julia – whom he married in 2014.

Up to 17 artists each year get the opportunity to enrol in a free, three-year, postgraduate programme at the art school, which was founded in 1769.

Julia and Hans Rausing said: “The RA Schools have produced some of the world’s most famous artists.

“It was founded to develop the brightest young artists based on merit.

“The RA Schools remain free and independent today and our gift allows for the restoration of the fabric of the building and its survival for future generations of artists.”

Christopher Le Brun, president of the Royal Academy of Arts, said: “One of the founding purposes of the Royal Academy was to provide a school of art to train the next generation of artists – 250 years later, the Royal Academy Schools is one of the best in the world.”

The RA Schools buildings, designed by Sir David Chipperfield, will be called the Julia and Hans Rausing Campus.