Freud's 'Big Sue' watches as her image sells for record £17 million
THE Camden Town muse of Lucian Freud dubbed 'Big Sue' has seen a naked painting of herself reclining on the sofa sell for a record £17million
THE Camden Town muse of Lucian Freud dubbed 'Big Sue' has seen a naked painting of herself reclining on the sofa sell for a record £17million.
Sue Tilley, a JobCentre worker from Augustus Street, has been thrust into the limelight following the Christie's auction in New York on Tuesday night.
The painting - Benefits Supervisor Sleeping - went under the hammer for $33.6 million - a new record for a work by a living artist. But Big Sue hasn't seen a penny for the deal.
"I'm thrilled the painting sold for so much but I haven't got anything extra out of it," said Ms Tilley, 51.
You may also want to watch:
"I got about £25 for the sitting when Lucian did the painting. And on top of that, he was very nice to me and made me lovely food.
"I remember going to his house in Holland Park and he made me things like rocket and parmesan salad, and sea bass."
Most Read
- 1 Falling stonework narrowly misses outdoor diners at Crouch End cafe
- 2 'Auto-destruction' in a train shed: how the Roundhouse made Camden cool
- 3 Lane closure scrapped after high pollution readings double
- 4 Pubs and restaurants look forward to 'normality' of indoors on May 17
- 5 Haringey Council leader ousted by rival in Labour group vote
- 6 Owner mourns Highgate station’s beloved black cat
- 7 'I want to make a difference': new leader for Haringey Council
- 8 Hampstead man jailed for pub 'revenge attack' on Jewish Tory barrister
- 9 Reader letter: Rubbish bins in Camden need 'levelling up'
- 10 Obituary: 'Striking and beautiful' north London mother Mary Collins
The world's media descended on the JobCentre worker this week, following the sale. But she told the Ham&High: "It's all been a bit tedious really. What I really want out of all this is a bit of glamour."
For more of Big Sue's reaction, see next week's Ham&High.
