A YORK artist has unveiled her own sculpture of the Queen - in memory of her famous brother.

Sylvia Schroer, of the Fabrication store, Coney Street, unveiled the bust in the store on the day King Charles III and Camilla visited York to unveil the statue of Queen Elizabeth II at York Minster.

Sylvia began sculpting in January when she enrolled at a pottery class at York College, and soon discovered she had a natural talent.

York Press: Sylvia Schroer with her bust of Queen Elizabeth II at the Fabrications store Sylvia Schroer with her bust of Queen Elizabeth II at the Fabrications store (Image: Emily Horner)

She said: "I'm really proud of the work I have done. I wanted to create a young bust of the Queen and used a postage stamp for her profile and outline.

"I got the inspiration for the crown from those on display at Newby Hall in Ripon." 

She is selling the bust at Fabrications, where it will remain on display until Christmas, for £1,000, and is donating half of the money to the British Heart Foundation in memory of her late brother. 

York Press: Bust of Queen Elizabeth II, sculptured by Sylvia SchroerBust of Queen Elizabeth II, sculptured by Sylvia Schroer (Image: Sylvia Schroer)

Her brother, Felix Schroer, directed Channel 4 drama Hollyoaks and was a fashion model in the 1980s for Vogue and Cosmopolitan magazines, and worked with Jean Paul Gaultier and Karl Lagerfeld.

He died unexpectedly, age just 59, from heart disease on March 20, 2020.

He had struggled to get through to a doctor due to the pressure on the NHS during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic and suffered a fatal cardiac arrest.

York Press: Sylvia's statue of Queen Elizabeth II Sylvia's statue of Queen Elizabeth II (Image: Sylvia Schroer)

Sylvia says she pushed for an inquest into his death at the time, but the Liverpool-based coroner ruled her brother died from natural causes.

Sylvia told The Press: "It was a very distressing and traumatising situation. 

"I couldn't have the time to grieve with the battles over the inquest, and so I wanted to learn a new artistic skill to help me process it.

"I want to draw awareness to prevent others dying from missed heart disease."

York Press: Bust of Felix Schroer, sculptured by his sister Sylvia SchroerBust of Felix Schroer, sculptured by his sister Sylvia Schroer (Image: Sylvia Schroer)

Sylvia began practising her new skill sculpting owls and cats, which were animals loved by Felix and his partner, and has since sculpted a bust of her brother which she says, "really captures his essence".

She completed the bust of the Queen on November 8, which was her brother's birthday.

Sylvia, who founded Back Lane Pottery Collective, watched the unveiling of the Minster statue of the Queen on Wednesday.

She said: "It was a really nice atmosphere, and the statue was beautiful, it was gleaming white and really stands out against the Minster facade.

"I was really moved by the passing of the Queen and it brought the whole country together."