Cristiano Ronaldo told bungling sculptor of disaster airport bust to iron out wrinkles to make Real Madrid hero look younger
Artist Emanuel Santos defended his handiwork claiming “even Jesus didn’t please everyone” but he has now passed the buck
CRISTIANO RONALDO asked his blundering sculptor to iron out his wrinkles to make him look younger.
The Real Madrid man was immortalised in a bronze bust at the Madeira airport renamed in his honour.
But the artwork was a laughing stock after capturing the essence of Art Attack character ‘The Head’ and resembling former Sunderland striker Niall Quinn.
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Artist Emanuel Santos defended his handiwork – claiming “even Jesus didn’t please everyone” – but he has now passed the buck onto the ‘specialist’ he left in charge of the bronzing.
Santos said: “The bronzing process failed. There was a mistake with the lines on the face.
“I spent a fortnight moulding the sculpture in clay. Then it went to plaster and then to get bronzed.
“A specialist did the bronzing, but it was not a good job.
“Cristiano asked me to get rid of the wrinkles above his left eye, so he would look younger.
“It has not pleased everybody. But no artist can please everybody.”
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Originally, when the statues laughable likeness to one of the world’s most famous men went viral, Santos hit back at his critics.
The under-fire craftsman said: “It is impossible to please the Greeks and Trojans. Even Jesus did not please everyone.
“This is a matter of taste, it’s not as simple as it seems. I have seen works by great artists that follow this parameter.
“What matters is the impact that this work generates. There is always the possibility of making a difference, I was prepared for all this.
“I used photos of Cristiano Ronaldo that I searched on the internet as a base. I put the photos next to me and started working on the bust.”