AT 28, he was the youngest person to paint the Queen's portrait, when he asked: "Do you mind keeping your head still?"
Eleven years on, with countless other commissions, resident TV appearances and a teach yourself drawing book to his credit, Heswall-born Christian Furr has been dubbed "the Jamie Oliver of art."
Christian says it is a title he can live with.
"Jamie has managed to get people inspired by cooking. He's really had an effect, particularly in schools."
And after viewing a recent GCSE art paper - "all about textures and really obscure things" - that's just what Christian wants to do: get back to the basics of inspiration.
"There are basic rules of art which everyone should know and which are not being given to people, particularly kids.
"Even the established art school system at the moment is not doing the right things.
"It came home to me when I judged a celebrity art programme for BBC Two and a very disappointed John Humphreys said he just wanted to be able to draw a cow."
Christian has since sent JH a copy of his new book, The Lost Art, which deals with such ground rules as the level of the eyes and the shape of the nose in the human face.
It's part of Christian's campaign "to prove than anyone really CAN be an artist.
