- .Turner Prize-winning potter, 53, wore dark blue dress and jacket for investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace
- .Joked that he was wearing his 'Italian mother of the bride outfit'
- .Perry received CBE for his services to art after '30 years of hard graft'
Transvestite potter Grayson Perry was today awarded the CBE by the Prince of Wales - and he dressed as an 'Italian mother of the bride' for the occasion.
The Turner Prize-winning artist, who regularly dresses as his female alter-ego 'Claire', received the honour at Buckingham Palace.
Mr Perry wore a midnight blue dress and matching fitted jacket with a wide brimmed black-hat decorated with what looked like ostrich feathers.
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Outfit: Grayson Perry dressed as an 'Italian mother of the bride' to receive the CBE at Buckingham Palace
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Investiture: Mr Perry shakes hand with the Prince of Wales as he receives the CBE
Speaking after the ceremony he said: 'Receiving this was great, it's not just for me it's for all the artists - no really it's just for me, for 30 years of hard graft.'
Mr Perry, 53, once described Claire as 'a cross between Katie Boyle and Camilla Parker-Bowles' but when reminded of this he laughed and said: 'This is my Italian mother of the bride outfit.'
He added: 'When I got the call my first thought was, "What am I going to wear?" It's a serious thing, I'm not going to compromise my identity as Britain's pre-eminent transvestite.
'I Googled to see what people wore and went for the sexier end. I always do like the older woman who makes an effort.'
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Close encounter: The artist shook hands with Prince Charles as he picked up the gong at Buckingham Palace
A Buckingham Palace spokesman said that the artist's 'attire was entirely appropriate'.
Other people who received honours from Prince Charles today included darts champion Catrina Gulliver, awarded an MBE, and comedy producer Gareth Gwenland, who was given an OBE.
Former newsreader Julia Somerville was also recognised, receiving an OBE for her work supporting the arts as a former chairman of the Government Art Collection's advisory committee.
Mr Perry, who grew up in Essex, made his name with hand-crafted pottery which is often illustrated with disturbing scenes of sex and child abuse.
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Royal occasion: Mr Perry posing with a pair of Beefeaters outside the Palace today
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Family: Mr Perry with his wife Philippa and their 21-year-old daughter Flo after the ceremony
He achieved widespread public fame in 2003 when he was awarded the Turner Prize - the first potter ever to receive Britain's most prestigious arts prize.
At the time, the judges praised him for 'subverting the craft form of ceramics'.
Born in 1960 in Chelmsford, he began his career at Braintree College of Further Education and then at Portsmouth Polytechnic, where he studied fine art.
Mr Perry says he realised he was a transvestite when he was teenager, and was thrown out of his father's home by his stepmother.
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Devotion: The Perrys have been married for more than two decades; Mrs Perry is a psychotherapist and author
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Alter ego: Mr Perry regularly dresses as a woman called 'Claire' and is known for his graphic pots
Later when he moved to London in the early 1980s he began attending evening pottery classes and developed a strong connection with the medium.
He has said that he loves using clay because 'it is held in such low esteem in the art world'.
His pots are covered with subject matter such as child abuse, autobiographical images of himself, Claire and his family, as well as examinations of cultural stereotypes.
He combines crudely-incised graffiti with drawing, slip painting, and the application of transfers, lustres and glazes to create an outer layer teeming with meaning.
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Victory: Mr and Mrs Perry with Flo after he won the Turner Prize in 2003
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Couple: The Perrys, who live in London, pictured at an awards show party last month
In recent years he has produced a set of six huge tapestries to accompany a Channel 4 series he presented on British taste, as well as curating a British Museum exhibition in 2011.
Perry toured the country for the programmes, starting with Sunderland, where he made two textile pieces based on places and characters he found in the city.
Speaking at the palace, Perry said: 'I'm grateful I'm not one of these people who has sky-rocketed to fame.
'Some people say I've become a member of the establishment but I've been that for years. I'm an RA [Royal Academician].
'The idea that rebellion is at the margins of society - that's false, it's far more interesting to be mischievous from the centre.'
He lives in London with his wife Philippa, a psychotherapist and author, and their 21-year-old daughter Flo.
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Well-known: Mr Perry's works in both ceramics and textiles have been highly praised in the art world
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