Francis John Williamson

Queen Victoria (frequently copied bust)

Samuel Timmins (bust in the Library of Birmingham )

Francis John Williamson (born July 17, 1833 in Hampstead, London , † March 12, 1920 in Esher , Surrey) was a British sculptor who created portraits of well-known personalities, including a bust of Queen Victoria and people from her family and circle .

He studied with John Bell and was a student of John Henry Foley for seven years and his assistant for another 14 years. Williamson had 38 exhibitions at the Royal Academy of Arts between 1853 and 1897 . During this time he first met Victoria. In 1870 she commissioned him to erect a memorial for Charlotte Augusta of Wales , the daughter of George IV , and her husband Leopold I. Many members of the royal family sat as models for Williamson, and in 1887 he created a bust of the Queen for the Golden Jubilee of the throne, numerous copies of which have been shown in the British Empire.

Williamson received a number of commissions from the City of Birmingham , including a bust of Shakespeare researcher Samuel Timmins now in the Library of Birmingham , a marble statue of the critical theologian and natural philosopher Joseph Priestley , the bronze cast of which now stands in Chamberlain Square, one Statue of the industrialist Sir Josiah Mason (destroyed, but a bronze cast from 1952 by William Bloye in the Erdington district), a statue of the preacher and reformer George Dawson (destroyed), a statue of the social reformer John Skirrow Wright (destroyed, a bronze cast from 1956 located in Birmingham Council House ), and the base decoration of the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery , known as the Allegory of Fame Rewarding the Arts (allegory of the Fama that honors the arts ). A copy of his bust of Tennyson (1893) is in the National Portrait Gallery .

He met his future wife, Elizabeth Smith, in Esher and they were married in 1857. In 1860 he moved into the home and studio at Fairholme 79, High Street, Esher , where he died. The building, which was later called "The Bunch of Grapes" and is now called "Grapes House", has been preserved and bears a blue plaque that was put up by the Esher Residents Association in 2010 in memory of it.

Selected Works

Joseph Priestley (bronze cast of the marble original; Chamberlain Square, Birmingham)

• Bust of Samuel Timmins, now in the Library of Birmingham
• Statue of Sister Dora, Walsall
• Memorial to Prince Leopold and Princess Charlotte, now in St. George's Church, Esher
• Bust of the Duke of Albany, Christ Church, Esher
• Diamond Jubilee Memorial, Esher
• Tomb of William Brett, 1st Viscount Esher and Viscountess, Esher, Christ Church churchyard, Esher
• Memorial to Henry Shrubsole, Market Place, Kingston-upon-Thames
• Bust of Tennyson
• Bust of Queen Victoria , copied many times
• Hypatia
• His Royal Highness Prince Edward of York
• Jesus as the Good Shepherd
• Allegory of Fame Rewarding the Arts , base of the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (1884)
• Statue of Sir Josiah Mason (1885; destroyed)
  • Bronze cast of the bust of William Bloye (1952)
• Statue of George Dawson (1885; destroyed)
  • Bronze casting of the statue of Bloye (1951; stolen, probably destroyed)
• Statue of John Skirrow Wright (1883; destroyed)
  • Bronze casting of the statue of Bloye (1956)
• Statue of Joseph Priestley , now Chamberlain Square, Birmingham (1951; bronze cast of the marble statue from 1874)
• Memorial to Dean Milman, St Paul's Cathedral

Web links

Commons : Francis John Williamson  - Collection of Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

• Open plaque No. 4406

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} Francis John Williamson . 2013. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k} George T. Noszlopy: Public Sculpture of Birmingham ( English ). Liverpool University Press, April 24, 1998, ISBN 0-85323-692-5 .
3. ^ ^{A b c} Francis John Williamson (1833–1920) ( English ) In: The Victorian Web . Retrieved August 29, 2013.
4. ↑ Memorial to Prince Leopold and Princess Charlotte ( English ) In: The Victorian Web . Retrieved August 29, 2013.
5. ↑ ^{a b c d} Esher Residents Association Blue Plaque Scheme - Current Status ( English ) Esher Residents Association. Archived from the original on September 27, 2013. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved September 3, 2013.