An Insightful Interview of Sorts with Sculptor Boris of Bulgaria

Boris Saxe Coburg Gotta with the "Pivotal" sculpture. Photograph (c) Boris Saxe Coburg Gotha

Earlier this week, London-based sculptor Boris Saxe Coburg Gotha (also known as Prince Boris of Bulgaria) gave an AMA (Ask Me Anything) segment on his Instagram. The questions posed to him and the answers he provided are given below for the reader to learn more about Boris's career, interests, and life.

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Q: How did you get inspired to start a business of such unique sculptures?

A: It started for charity! But I enjoy puzzling concepts and making pieces that challenge the viewer. 

Q: Who are the artists that inspire you or that you admire the most?

A: I love Richard Serra, Kandinsky, Miró, Donald Judd, Rusha, and Russian de-constructivism. But I take inspiration from anything and everything. I love science, engineering, and design, so there's many more areas of inspiration and interest. 

Q: How's the Covid situation in London? 

A: Better, we can now walk in the park with one person [while] maintaining social distance. The vaccine is being rolled out very quickly.

Q: How has art and your work helped you during the Covid lockdowns? 

A: It's kept me busy and more motivated. It also helped me develop and grow. It's been an amazing journey so far!

Q: What song can't you get enough of these days?

A: The Business by Tiësto. This song has been stuck! Not my usual genre, but for some reason [I cannot stop listening to it].

Q: As someone who wears glasses and wears a mask, how do you avoid your glasses fogging up?

A: I can't! It's a constant problem for people who wear glasses!

Q: Which one of your pieces is your favourite so far?

A: I really loved making this one [the "Passion" sculpture]! I want to try out more concepts around this. I'm also working on some text art works with lights. But I am most proud of the one I did to raise money for charity!

Q: Do you make sculptures in bronze or steel?

A: Not yet, but I would love to make this one out of bronze or steel! I am open for commissions! 

Q: What is your next project? Are you planning on designing furniture, for instance?

A: I have many projects in mind. It's hard to materialise them as I don't have a proper studio. There is a table concept that I'd love to produce!

Q: Do you have some sort of record of where your sculptures go?

A: Yes! I keep track of everything! There are sculptures from Peru to Bulgaria, from the Middle East to Spain!

Q: What is the first place you'll visit when there are no restrictions?

A: I'm not sure, but I can't wait to travel and see friends!

Q: What time of day do you find you're most creative?

A: Always at night. I had the idea for this table [that I made] in the middle of the night, and spent the whole night and day making it!

Q: Aside from making modern sculpture, what are your other interests?

A: There are too many! I'm a very curious person and I'm interested in a lot, but here are just a few things: engineering, photography and photogrammetry, Formula One, Sim driving, opals and gemstones, technology and phones, playing the drums, philosophy, geology and zoology. I could go [on] for ages.

Q: What's your favourite food or meal?

A: I love all kinds of food. I love trying new things, but if I had to choose one cuisine it would be Mediterranean or Japanese. 

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Boris Saxe Coburg Gotha studied at the University of Arts London from 2016-2019; there he earned a BFA in Fine Art Sculpture. He was previously educated at the Lycée Français Molière in Villanueva de la Cañada near Madrid. Boris lives in London. 

Born in 1997, Prince Boris of Bulgaria is the son of Crown Princess Miriam of Bulgaria, a jewellery designer better known as Miriam de Ungria, and the late Crown Prince Kardam of Bulgaria. Boris is a grandson of King Simeon II of Bulgaria and his wife Queen Margarita. Boris has one brother, Prince Beltran.

During the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Boris Saxe Coburg Gotha raised £1,280 for the National Health Service. On his fundraiser's webpage, he gave the following statement for his desire to help in some way:

I wanted to first and foremost thank everyone in the NHS, whether you are a nurse, doctor or volunteer, for all your relentless efforts in containing this Virus. As we begin to see the loosening of restrictions, the return to normality, we look back at how this crisis has affected everyone. One way or another everyone has seen a change in their life or will have to adapt to the times to come. The NHS has seen the worst side of this pandemic but it is far from over. The NHS Charities Together supports over 250 charities under their umbrella, from staff, to equipment and anything in between. Their Covid relief campaign has raised over £100 Million and they continue to gather more and more donations. https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/ClapForOurCarers With this fundraiser I aim to contribute to their efforts. Please share with all your friends and donate anything you can. Just Giving is truly a great platform. Alternatively you can donate directly to the Covid Relief with the link above. This campaign is aiming to collect £1000 through donations. As an artist I wanted to use my platform and art for the better good and at the end of the campaign my sculpture will go to the highest donor.

To learn more about the works of Boris Saxe Coburg Gotha, please see his website: BSCG.

Ernst August & Ekaterina of Hannover Expecting Third Child

The Hereditary Prince and Princess of Hannover on their wedding day.

Hereditary Prince Ernst August of Hannover and his wife Ekaterina are expecting their third child, Bunte has reported. The couple married in 2017. Ernst August and Ekaterina have two children: Princess Elisabeth (b.2018) and Prince Welf August (b.2019). 

The Chaumet Lacis Tiara for the Russian Imperial Wedding in October!

THE CHAUMET LACIS TIARA FOR PRINCESS VICTORIA ROMANOVNA

 

The Chaumet Lacis Tiara.
Photograph (c) Chaumet.

In news that will delight royal jewellery watchers, the future Princess Victoria Romanovna Romanoff will be wearing a magnificent tiara created by Maison Chaumet when she marries Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia. Grand Duke George is the son of Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna, head of the Russian Imperial House, and Prince Franz-Wilhelm of Prussia. Victoria Romanovna Bettarini is the daughter of Ambassador and Sigra. Roberto Bettarini. Maison Chaumet has crafted exceptional tiaras, jewels, and timepieces at the very heart of the place Vendôme since 1780. The High Jewellery savoir-faire of the Maison has been passed down through generations of jewellers for almost 240 years. The bride-to-be of the heir to the Imperial House of Russia recently joined Jérôme Carron and David Nivière of Point de Vue when she visited Chaumet's Parisian headquarters to select her nuptial diadem. Victoria was presented with eleven tiaras, one of which was the Chaumet Bourbon-Parma Tiara, from which to made her choice. After consideration, Victoria Romanovna decided upon a piece that has never been worn before: the Lacis Tiara. 

Grand Duke George Mikhailovich and the future Princess Victoria Romanovna.
Photograph (c) Russian Imperial Chancellery.

Maison Chaumet provides this description of the tiara:

Lacis tiara in white gold, set with one oval-cut D VVS1 diamond of 5.02 carats, one pear-shaped D VVS2 diamond of 2.21 carats and brilliant-cut diamonds.

A subtle interplay of light and transparency is orchestrated by the crossing of fils couteau mountings, an iconic virtuosity of the Maison which seems to render the metal structure invisible in order to let the stones sparkle.

Recalling the stone latticework and mashrabiyas of contemporary architecture, with its white gold interlacing Lacis delineates symmetrical and delicate jewellery while also suggesting maze of narrow streets. This modern reinterpretation of diamond mesh, an historic Chaumet signature, is especially striking in the form of a light tiara, a secret watch, and rings and bracelets with airy volumes.

The Lacis tiara took over 800 hours of work by Chaumet’s jewellers, polishers and gem-setters to create. The tiara's creation was completed in July 2020. The tiara is made of white gold and over 438 brilliant diamonds of varying sizes.

Source: Chaumet Lacis tiara

The Lacis Tiara.
Photograph (c) Chaumet.

A side view of the Lacis Tiara.
Photograph (c) Chaumet.

In Point de Vue, Rebecca Victoria Romanovna Bettarini notes that she was particularly drawn to this piece as its shape recalls a kokoshnik, the traditional Russian headdress. The Lacis tiara was created by Benoît Verhulle, the Chaumet chef d'atelier. It will be a worthy addition to this historic Russian imperial wedding.

MAISON CHAUMET AND THE ROMANOVS

 

Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna Senior and the Chaumet Waterfall Tiara.

 

Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna, wife of Grand Duke Vladimir (the brother of Tsar Alexander III and the uncle of Tsar Nicholas II), was certainly the Russian imperial client most in contact with Joseph Chaumet. The grand duchess's first major acquisition, in 1899, was a “waterfall” tiara typical of the jeweller’s designs: three clusters ended in dangling briolette-cut diamonds that gave the illusion of drops of water about to fall. Indeed, the Waterfall Tiara was intended as a gift from Grand Duke Vladimir Alexandrovich to his wife on the occasion of their silver wedding anniversary. It is worth noting that Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna is the great-great-grandmother of Grand Duke George Mikhailovich.

Princess Irina Alexandrovna Yusupov wearing her Chaumet Sunburst Tiara.

Another notable Romanov client of Chaumet was Princess Irina Alexandrovna of Russia, Princess Yusupov, who arranged for all of the jewels she received for her wedding to be designed and created by the jewellery firm.

 

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For an English-language translation of the Point de Vue article, please see The Russian Legitimist. 

For an English-language interview with Monsieur Benoît Verhulle of Maison Chaumet, please see “The Chaumet method is to say that we will succeed."

The Little Known Daughter-In-Law of King Peter I of Serbia: Radmila Radonjić

 

Former Crown Prince George of Serbia and his wife Radmila.

On 4 July 1907 at Njeguši, Montenegro, Radmila Radonjić was born into a notable Montenegrin family. In 1947, she married the former Crown Prince George of Serbia (1887-1972), eldest son of King Peter I of Serbia (1844-1921) and Princess Zorka of Montenegro (1864-1890). Radmila later recounted how she encountered her future husband and how their relationship progressed: "I met my husband during the war. He came regularly to see my relatives in Dedinje. These were only short visits. Our feelings for one another came later, only in 1946, because we met again after the war. Then our wedding took place, without the usual ceremonies. It was a civil marriage. The prince did not allow any parades and ceremonies." Radmila and George religiously wed in 1955. The couple did not have children. 

Radmila Radonjić.

Radmila was widowed when Prince George of Serbia died at Belgrade on 17 October 1972. The prince, aged eighty-four, had been ill with an heart ailment for some period. His passing was briefly noted in the Yugoslavian press by the national news agency Tanjug (Танјуг): "Đorđe Karađorđević, born in 1887, was the first Serbian heir to the throne up to 1909, when he renounced all rights of succession. He was a brave fighter in the Balkan wars and in the First World War." In his old age, Belgrade residents remembered that Prince George was a frequent visit to Hunter's Café near the British embassy. The prince would dress in an old suite and a Basque beret, sitting for hours while drinking either brandy or Turkish coffee and chatting with friends. Prince George outlived all of his siblings: his sister Princess Jelena, who married Prince Ioann Konstantinovich of Russia, died in 1962; and his brother King Alexander I of Yugoslavia, who married Princess Marie of Romania, was assassinated in 1934. George of Serbia was buried at the Royal Mausoleum at Saint George's Church in Oplenac.

Prince Karl Vladimir of Yugoslavia and Radmila Radonjić in the 1990s.

 

Radmila Karageorgevich survived her husband by over two decades. She gave additional insights into her life with her late husband Prince George: "Never respecting the rules of the royal court, which, by the way, he considered a stupid fabrication, George did not even find it necessary to inform about his marriage to the king in exile [his nephew King Peter II]. Even less did he consider to ask or expect the king's approval of his marriage, as required by court rules. Our life in the prince's villa at Dedinje went on as usual. Since George was educated up in military schools from an early age, he knew how to follow an established order. Almost every day, we went fishing, on the Sava or at Ritopek behind Vinča." 

 

Radmila's grave at Oplenac.

 

At the age of eighty-six, Radmila Karageorgevich died at Belgrade on 5 September 1993. In a similar manner to her husband, who had survived all of his siblings, Radmila outlived all of her royal in-laws. Her sister-in-law Princess Jelena's husband Prince Ioann Konstantinovich of Russia was murdered by the Bolsheviks in 1918 during the Russian Revolution, and her brother-in-law King Alexander of Serbia's wife Queen Marie passed away in 1960. Radmila Radonjić Karageorgevich, who in a different world might have been Crown Princess of Serbia, was buried next to her husband at Oplenac.

 

Max Emanuel Prinz von Thurn und Taxis (1965-2021), The “Prosecco Prince”

 

Max Emanuel von Thurn und Taxis.

On Sunday, 14 March, Max Emanuel Prinz von Thurn und Taxis died of Covid-19. Max Emanuel, the founder of Max Emanuel von Thurn und Taxis Sparkling Wine, was fifty-five years-old. 

Born on 8 June 1965 at Vienna, Max-Emanuel Karl Lamoral Prinz von Thurn und Taxis was the eldest of the three sons of Lamoral Prinz von Thurn und Taxis (b.1937) and Dorothea Hornberg (1942-1999), who married in 1961 and divorced in 1978. Max Emanuel had two younger brothers, Stefan (1967-2005) and Andreas (b.1970). In 1986, Max Emanuel von Thurn und Taxis married Carine Lackner (b.1962); the couple divorced that same year.

Max Emanuel, a member of a non-dynastic branch of the Thurn und Taxis dynasty, was diagnosed with the novel coronavirus last week. According to friends of the “Prosecco Prince,” he was experiencing only mild symptoms, such as shortness of breath, before his condition rapidly deteriorated over the weekend.

May Max Emanuel Rest In Peace.

A Right Royal Riddle: Who Am I?

A Gotha Quiz: Who Am I?

By Darren Shelton for the European Royal History Journal.

I was the daughter of a king, and the granddaughter of another king. My mother, a child bride, was a truly royal woman with the common touch. 

 

A member of a large family, I had a wonderful and relaxed childhood. Several vied for my hand, one in particular, and the most determined of these men, although a ruler, turned my stomach. Fortunately I was spared his ultimate fate. 

 

When I eventually settled into the marital state, my husband came from a house that had many alliances with my own. My early married life was one of luxury, then circumstances outside of my control altered my life beyond all scope. 

 

I lost my husband and raised our two children alone. I eventually married a second time, a native of my country.

Who am I? The answer will be posted on Wednesday.

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Love in the Time of Covid: A Princely Marriage in Paris

Newlyweds: Prince Joachim and Princess Yasmine Murat.
Photograph (c) Frederic de Natal.

On 5 March 2021, Prince Joachim Murat, Principe di Monte-Corvo, married Yasmine Briki. A civil marriage, the Murat/Briki union took place at the mairie of the 10th arrondissement in Paris. The nuptials were attended by Grand Duke George Mikhailovich of Russia and his fiancée Victoria Romanovna Bettarini. The ceremony took place in accordance with the Covid-19 restrictions that are in place in France.

Grand Duke George of Russia, Prince Joachim Murat, Prince David Bagrationi of Georgia attend the wedding of Crown Prince Leka and Crown Princess Elia of Albania, 2016.
Photograph (c) Getty Images / Luc Castel.

 

Prince Joachim and Princess Yasmine Murat with their family.
Photograph (c) Frederic de Natal.

 

Born at Paris on 3 May 1973, Prince Joachim Napoléon Murat is the only son of Prince Joachim Louis Napoléon, 8th Prince Murat, 7th Principe di Pontecorvo (b.1944) and his first wife Laurence Marie Gabrielle Mouton (b.1945), who wed in 1969. The recent noble groom has four sisters: Princess Caroline (b.1971), Princess Laetitia (b.1975; married Denis Charissoux), and the twins Princess Elisa and Princess Pauline (b.1977). Prince Joachim Murat is a descendant of Joachim Murat, 1st Prince Murat, Grand Duke of Berg, and King of Naples, as well as his wife Caroline Bonaparte, one of the sisters of Napoléon Bonaparte, Emperor of the French. 

 

Princess Yasmine Murat.
Photograph (c) Instagram.

 

Born in Algeria on 23 February 1982, Yasmine Lorraine Briki is a descendant of a noble Yemeni family. The new Princess Murat is the CEO and Founder of the Gouvernance Think Tank and Magazine. Princess Yasmine is also the President of United Hopes.

 

Our congratulations to Prince Joachim and Princess Yasmine on the occasion of their wedding!

 

Note: One wishes to extend thanks to dear friend Frederic de Natal for informing of this princely wedding and for allowing the use his photographs. You can read his French-language article about the Murat nuptials here at his blog: Le Prince Joachim & Yasmine, un mariage royal en cette année Napoléon.