Michael Rizzello OBE (1926-2004)

Michael Rizzello was a prolific figurative sculptor and accomplished animalier, whose work appears in public, private and royal collections worldwide.   His work has rarely appeared in galleries, as he had decided early on that this was not conducive to his approach.   He balanced his 60 years of working life between private commissions, completing thousands of coin and medal design briefs for the Royal Mint and others, and creating many personal sketches, drawings and small sculptures.   He was a great advocate of domestic sculpture, and the importance of art in the home.  

Michael Rizzello studied at the Royal College of Art, London where he was awarded both the Royal College of Art Drawing Prize and the Major Travelling Scholarship in Sculpture enabling him to study in France and Italy. He was awarded the Prix de Rome for Sculpture in 1951.   He became President of the Society of Portrait Sculptors 1968-73 and was elected President of the Royal Society of British Sculptors in 1976, serving an unprecedented term of two five year periods until 1986.   He was appointed OBE in the Queens Silver Jubilee Honours List of 1977 and elected a Fellow of the Chartered Society of Designers.  

His work ranges in scale from miniatures to large architectural works, and included a significant amount of public statuary.   He created many sculptures and reliefs for monarchs and heads of state including approved effigies of HM the Queen and HRH the Duke of Edinburgh and HRH The Prince of Wales.   Amongst his final commissions were the official memorial to HM Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother for the Chapel at Windsor Castle, and a memorial plaque to HRH Princess Margaret for the Royal Opera House. He designed the UK £2 coin to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the United Nations.