This Week’s Hero of the Week goes to the new member of the Order of Merit, David Hockney
The UK’s honours system has been the subject of frequent and justified criticism. Whether it was David Lloyd George selling peerages or the more nebulous but
equally dubious awarding of gongs to wealthy individuals who donate money to political parties. As Jackie South wrote earlier today this kind of abuse of the system is still very much with us.
One honour though has mostly risen above the tawdriness of K’s and life peerages: the Order of Merit. Limited to only 24 members at any one time and in the personal gift of the monarch, its recipients have been on the whole the most distinguished of scientists, artists and, yes, politicians. I say ‘mostly’ and ‘on the whole’ because rather absurdly the Duke of Edinburgh and the Prince of Wales are two of the Order’s members. Most absurdly of all Prince Charles’ citation describes as ‘heir to the throne and conservationist’.
But ignoring the royal members, the list is difficult to argue with in terms of eminence. On the arts side: architect Norman Foster, sculptor Sir Anthony Caro, director of the British Museum (and former director of the National Gallery) Neil MacGregor, playwright Sir Tom Stoppard. On the science side: biologist and Nobel prize winner, Sir Andrew Huxley, double Nobel prize winning biochemist, Frederick Sanger, Fields Prize winning mathematician Sir Michael Atiyah, physicist Sir Roger Penrose, Former Chief Scientist and climate change scientist Lord May of Oxford. As for politicians, there is Baroness Thatcher (whatever you think of her politics you can hardly doubt her eminence), former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien and Betty Boothroyd.
One of the other artist members was Lucien Freud until his death in July of last year. It is therefore appropriate that Freud’s place is taken by the only living British painter who is worthy of being mentioned in the same sentence as him: David Hockney. The brightness sunniness of much of his work is in stark contrast to the industrial north of England from which Hockney came and continues to be proudly associated. The locating of much of his work in the Salt’s Mill Museum in Saltaire in Bradford including his recent 25 Trees series has demonstrated his commitment to his birth city.
Hockney was a conscientious objector in the 1950s (refusing to undertake national service), was involved in radical politics in the 1960s and previously turned down a knighthood in 1990. In October 2010 he was one of over a hundred artists who wrote an open letter to the Secretary of State for Culture Media and Sports, Jeremy Hunt, protesting against the government’s cuts to the arts.
His admission to the Order of Merit is thoroughly deserved and we at Allthatsleft would like to add to it by awarding him our nearly as prestigious Hero of the Week Award.
HERO
PRAT
VILLAIN
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
David Hockney deserves both! Another deserving OM missed from your list is David Attenborough.
However, it’s worth noting that the Order of Merit was also given this time to the far less worthy John Howard, so let’s not get too carried away with the merit of the OM.
Complaining about John Howard getting it, is like complaining about Jean Chretien or Margaret Thatcher getting it. As long standing prime ministers who won multiple elections in their countries I think it is difficult to argue with their awards, even if you disagree vehemently with their politics.
I stand by my view that it is probably the most genuinely meritorious honour we have.
And I was concentrating on the artists, scientists and politicians – but yes Attenborough, Sir Michael Howard the historian and Tim Berners-Lee are all difficult to argue with.