Paul Day, British sculptor and author, among others, of the statue of a couple hugging at St Pancras station in London, has been living in Auxois for several years. Throughout his career, he had several opportunities to meet Queen Elizabeth II, who died on Thursday at the age of 96.
How do you feel this morning, the day after the Queen’s disappearance?
I had the great privilege of meeting her six times, and on three occasions she was present for the inauguration of my works. So I feel a part, deep within myself, that has disappeared, it leaves an almost physical void. Inevitably, I am in mourning with all my compatriots and all citizens, even French, who also seem to carry within them a very strong image of the queen. I am both very sad because of this news, but at the same time, deep inside me, I would like and it will come later, to celebrate this incredible life that has marked a lot of people. It was as if the queen was intimately linked to all of us, in the places where we lived, in our family lives.
What finally comes to mind when you think of the Queen of England?
I had the honor of accompanying him, of presenting him with the monument in London which brings together his father George VI and his mother, the Queen Mother. And when I took her by the hand through this monument, I felt a huge emotion in her seeing her parents together again. Which touched me a lot but left me a bit perplexed because I didn’t really know how to react. I had my queen with me, with tears in my eyes.
We remember that the queen lived through the bombings of London during the Second World War. At the time, she had not left town.
It was a decision of his parents who could have evacuated him to Canada. And Buckingham Palace was hit by bombs, yes. And so the queen, of course, participated in a war effort by working for the ambulance service. And I think that obviously, this story marked the character of the queen.