LEON NEAL/AFP/Getty ImagesKate Middleton's first official portrait wasn't exactly well-received by the public, but the artist who created it (and even the princess herself!) is quite pleased with how it turned out.
Still, the criticism led Paul Emsley to question his work and even try capturing the pregnant royal a second time, this time as more glamorous and upbeat.
Per the Washington Post, his second version of Kate's portrait only made him realize the original was exactly what he set out to create. And sorry, he's not allowing anyone to photograph this second sketch.
"There's a quotation an American friend of mine, the wife of an American artist, sent me in support," he said. "When Picasso was told his portrait of Gertrude Stein did not look like her, his response was, 'It will.' People will become acclimatized over time to something which is not something that they were expecting."
One of the criticisms of Kate's portrait was that it made her look older than her 31 years. "I did not deliberately age her or anything like that," Emsley clarified. "I wanted it to be an authentic record, but it's very easy to put in more shadows and things than are perfectly necessary, and I haven't done that. I've tried to record, in a polite way, what I regard as her natural beauty."
And for what it's worth, Emsley said that while he understands "critics have a job to do," he doesn't "really take their opinions too seriously."
Confidence like a king!