Yeo is talking about his new, strikingly green, portrait of Sir David Attenborough, a figure who has gone beyond being a national treasure to someone known globally, and someone people might listen to when it comes to the catastrophes facing the world.
The portrait was commissioned by the Royal Society and Yeo believes it is more relevant than ever. "At a time when the planet seems more fragile than it ever has, that ability to educate people - and let's face it, our politicians aren't doing a very good job of dealing with the problems at hand - is more important than ever," Yeo said.
Yeo is talking just a month after one of the biggest fusses over a portrait for years: his vast and vividly red portrait of King Charles.
Measuring 230cm by 165.5cm, it is the first official painted portrait of Charles as king and went down badly with some critics. It was, for the Guardian's Jonathan Jones, a bland, formulaic "masterpiece of shallowness".
For the Washington Post's Sebastian Smee it was "confused, obsequious, oversized" and "unaccountably frightening".
The New Statesman defended it, sort of. "This portrait will remind future generations of the King's weirdness," wrote Kara Kennedy.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Campbell says she failed in her charity duties but denies any personal gain
Naomi Campbell has admitted she failed in her duties as a trustee at the Fashion for Relief charity she founded - but insisted she never engaged in financial misconduct or used the charity for personal gain during its chaotic nine-year existence.
Freedom of speech? Argentina's leader 'lifted' lines straight from the West Wing
Argentina's rightwing populist president, Javier Milei, has been accused of plagiarising a chunk of his recent speech to the UN general assembly from the political drama The West Wing.
You can't beat a bit of Freddie: Flintoff to host Bullseye revival
Andrew Flintoff is to relaunch his television hosting career by fronting a one-off Christmas special of the gameshow Bullseye.
Cabinet set for split on assisted dying vote as Miliband backs the bill
MPs backing a new bill to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales hope to secure a Commons vote by Christmas, but cabinet ministers are set for a big split over support for the legislation.
Police 'took bribes to help AI Fayed persecute staff'
Scotland Yard is facing claims that corrupt police officers helped Mohamed AI Fayed in persecuting members of his staff, including a young woman who allegedly rebuffed the Harrods owner's sexual advances.
Dewsbury-Hall delivers as Gent hit by goal rush
With every result, Enzo Maresca is making Chelsea believe again.
'My home record is bloody good so it's hard to match that'
Chris Woakes is ready for the challenge of leading England's Test attack in Pakistan and justifying Brendon McCullum's faith in his ability overseas
Brewer to reduce emissions by making beer using heat pump
An independent brewery in West Sussex is poised to become the first in Britain to make its beer using an ultra-high-temperature heat pump in place of an oil boiler.
Carmakers complain of pressure to hit EV targets despite record sales in September
UK electric car sales hit a record high in September, even as bosses from major carmakers told the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, that government targets were putting too much pressure on the industry.
Bank of England monitoring crisis in the Middle East 'extremely closely'
The Bank of England is monitoring the Middle East crisis amid fears that a worsening conflict between Iran and Israel will make it impossible to stabilise oil prices and leave the global economy vulnerable to a 1970s-style energy shock.
