Prince George, 13, defended by art teacher over drawing ‘backlash’

LEAVE A COMMENT The latest issue of Country Life, guest edited by Prince William, included an incredible drawing by his own son, Prince George. The royal dedicated a full page to the detailed pencilwork of a bird, and the caption revealed that George completed the design when he was just 12 years old.

Despite it looking jaw-droppingly impressive, there have been some critiques bubbling online after members of the public discovered that the kingfisher drawing, in fact, came from an online drawing tutorial (The Virtual Instructor), making it likely that the young Prince used the tutorial to help him complete the piece of art.

Artist Matt Fussell, and founder of the tutorial platform, spoke to USA Today about this possibility, and while he couldn't confirm if the royal had used the course, he said "the similarities are certainly exciting to see".

But fans were quick to defend George, explaining that it is still an immensely impressive feat, even if he did use a step-by-step guide to complete the process.

A Reddit thread was filled with impassioned users commending George on his efforts and skills. One penned: "There's no shame in using a tutorial, and good for him for wanting to learn to draw birds." Another added: "It's still a very good drawing, copy or not." A third commented: "That is a valid way to learn art."

Barry Whitehouse, who is an art teacher, has since gone viral on Instagram for wading into the debate to give "his take" on George's talents. "This is really quite good, it does show a lot of talent," he says.

He went on to point out the flaws with the comments he's seen online. "What has surprised me is the amount of backlash that this child's artwork has seen online from adult artists." Shaming them for tearing the young artists down, he then expressed that having royals interested in the arts is a good thing to have "support from quite a top level", explaining that King Charles is a good painter, too.

Art is clearly something that George has been passionate about for years, considering his mother and father shared one of his watercolour paintings when he was only nine years old. The Waleses shared George's striking watercolour painting of a reindeer, with the caption: "Happy Christmas! [paint emoji] by George" in December 2022.

Royal fans were in awe of the young royal's skills at the time, and rushed to share praise in the comments section on Instagram.

"Very talented George! My little girl loves art and she is very impressed with the festive reindeer. Great job! Wishing you all a very merry Christmas!" penned one follower, and: "Wow. He has a great artistic talent! (an artist's eye and hand) Beautiful artwork!" added another.

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