Looking Forward to the Past; An Illustrious 275 Years © 2022 by Gladwell & Patterson
Published in the United Kingdom by Gladwell & Patterson
Text and editing by Glenn Fuller
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form by any means without written permission of the publisher.
ISBN 978-1-3999-4056-6
www.gladwellpatterson.com
Allow me to take you on a journey and tell you a tale that will enthrall and astound. A journey that begins way back in 1746 and continues to this day.
Our tale contains heros and giants, men and women of incredible strength and fortitude, pioneers and leaders. It contains deep friendships, wonderful wealth and power, and integrity and trust.
Our story carries on through the Industrial Revolution, the American Revolution and the French Revolution, through the Great War and the Second World War, it covers a period that spans the reign of nine Kings and two Queens of England, the birth of communism and the American Declaration of Independence.
A period that includes the publishing of Dr. Johnson’s first ever Dictionary of the English Language, Charles Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection”, and Watson and Crick’s discovery of DNA. A period in which oxygen, radioactivity, penicillin, and the structure of the atom were discovered. When photography, telephones, cars, computers and the internet were all invented.
Most of all, however, our tale traverses many artistic movements, it contains incredible beauty, the wonder and power of artistic creation and its ability to bring such joy, contentment and unity to the World.
Enjoy, dear reader.
Glenn FullerFlourishing for 275 years
1. Standing on the Shoulders of Giants p.9 Introduction p.11
Our Leading Characters
a. The Pioneers - Firm and Illustrious Foundations i. John Boydell p.14 ii. Henry Graves p.26 iii. Sir Francis Graham Moon p.29 iv. Algernon Graves p.34 b. The Gladwell Dynasty – Four Generations of Forebears
i. Thomas Henry Wade Gladwell p.50 ii. The Gladwell Brothers p.55 iii. Harry Gladwell p.61 iv. Harry and Vincent p.63 v. Algernon Gladwell p.71 c. The Fullers
i. Herbert Arthur George Fuller p.80 ii. Anthony Richard Fuller p.86 d. William H. Patterson p.98
2. Cathedrals to Art - Creating a Firm Foundation Our Galleries
a. 20 & 21 Gracechurch Street p.110 b. 70 & 71 Cheapside p.114 c. 68 Queen Victoria Street p.118 d. 19 Albemarle Street p.122 e. 5 Beauchamp Place p.124 f. 23b Mill Street, Rutland p.128
3. In Today’s World a. In the Frame p.136 b. Out and About p.138 c. Spreading the Word p.142 d. Our Wider Family p.144 4. Looking Forward p.150 5. A Pause to Reflect p. 20, 42, 74, 92, 102, 130 Conclusion p. 154
Bibliography p. 156
The foundations of our fine art gallery are based on the pioneering and passionate work of many giants of the art world over the past 275 years. It is due to their inspiration, bravery and forward thinking that we are fortunate to find ourselves in the enviable position that we hold today. Their number include two Lord Mayors of London, a man who is credited with being the driving force behind the establishment of the National Gallery, the Head of the Fine Art Trade Guild and Masters of several of the Worshipful Companies in the City, amongst many other accolades.
As custodians and protectors of this wonderful old gallery, they have steered its course through prosperous times, tough times and through wartimes. Enormous changes and immense challenges have faced them all and yet these have been overcome with fortitude and strong will. In no small part, they have been helped by their adherence to one simple rule; to deal in the finest quality art and to focus on our founding principlestrust, integrity and a discerning love of art.
We take great pleasure in highlighting some of these giants here.
Our story begins in 1746, just at the start of the Industrial Revolution. At that time, Georgian London was a bustling City and home to seven hundred and fifty thousand people, and yet life was still primitive - hand pumps were still used to draw water and a journey to Edinburgh took two weeks.
Artistically, London remained a backwater compared to many of its European counterparts. Travel was restricted to the very adventurous or the aristocratic elite who had to embark on the ’Grand Tour’ in pursuit of art, antiquities and culture, and the middle classes were only able to dream of such exotic places and treasures.
This was all soon to change as the Industrial Revolution brought about incredible advances in industry and in transport and the culture of London altered as a result. New factories on the city’s outskirts brought new residents doubling the population in fifty short years. Roads, water and drainage systems were all upgraded and introduced, and gas and oil lamps began to appear, lighting the streets of London.
Those of the middle classes that had dreamed for many years of experiencing new destinations and of seeing incredible treasures were able to explore both these, domestically and internationally.
Advances in technology allowed artists and publishers to bring images of the wider world to the general population. The methods of the production of prints grew from simple black and white woodblock, etching and engraving techniques which had been the only options for centuries into a variety of new methods. The mezzotint which was invented in the seventeeth century became ever more popular and through experimentation, artists and publishers were able to make the appearance of prints mimic the appearance of drawings. Artists were able to introduce colour into their prints, and the invention of lithography around 1800 made it possible to produce large editions of prints from a single drawing.
The emerging middle classes with revolutionised tastes provided a new and growing audience for these prints. London was changing at a dizzying speed and the new homeowners had houses to decorate and money with which to decorate them.
At the forefront of this artistic revolution were such artists and entrepreneurs as William Hogarth, Arthur Pond and John Boydell, who became the greatest print merchant of Georgian London. The Engraving Copyright Act of 1735 had extended the law of copyright from literature to the visual arts and alongside the supervision of the Livery Companies of the City, the artistic quality of the print trade in London’s nascent market was established. Academies and Societies began to be formed culminating in the foundation of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1768.
The extended conflicts of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries across Europe, including the French Revolution from 1789 to 1799, helped to establish London as the new centre of the art world, and brought art collections of incredible quality to the London market.
Set amidst this backdrop of change and advancement, those afforded with vision and entrepreneurship were given the chance to shine. The brightest light amongst them was John Boydell.
John Boydell was born in Old Jewry, London in 1720 and was educated for a period at Merchant Taylors’ School. His father was a land surveyor and he was widely expected to follow in his father’s footsteps when the family moved to Flintshire, Wales when he was eleven.
Boydell however had bigger ambitions. Ambitions that were awakened when he saw a print of the Hawarden Castle by William Henry Toms, and he was so taken with it that it changed the course of his life. He immediately knew that this was what he was meant to do and so he set off for London to meet the artist.
Toms was so taken with the young lad’s enthusiasm that he took him on as an apprentice. Boydell worked incredibly hard –often fourteen hours a day for Toms, and he also enrolled himself in the St. Martin’s Lane Academy where he learnt drawing by night. He achieved a great deal and after six years of studious labour, Toms allowed him to buy out the last year of his apprenticeship and go his own way.
John Boydell by Sir William Beechey, 1801 bequeathed to the National Portrait Gallery by Henry Graves in 1892 and now residing in the Museum of London collection
So it was that in 1746 that young Boydell set up his own establishment on the Strand which specialised in topographical prints that cost six pence for a cheap print and one shilling for an expensive one. Boydell soon realised that the real money lay in the publishing of the prints rather than in producing the engravings, and by being able to adapt to both sides of the publishing business, he became much more resilient and much more successful.
Boydell married his childhood sweetheart Elizabeth Lloyd in 1748, and they were to live a long and happy life together.
Boydell’s middle-class clientele had an
appetite for European prints and he started importing these in large quantities from the continent to great success. His business brain couldn’t understand the Europeans’ refusal to engage in reciprocal trade and he tried to address this by commissioning a spectacular engraving by William Wollett of Richard Wilson’s “The Destruction of the Children of Niobe”. Such was the success of this initiative that within ten years the trade imbalance had significantly shifted, and he was named a fellow of the Royal Society for his efforts.
Boydell’s ambition and enterprise knew no bounds, and by being able to adapt
to both sides of the engraving and publishing business he became more resilient and much more successful. Just five short years later he moved to a much larger premises at 90 Cheapside where the gallery stayed for many years.
localities have had their day, have risen, become fashionable, and have sunk into obscurity and neglect, but Cheapside has maintained its place, and may boast of being the busiest thoroughfare in the world, with the sole exception perhaps of London Bridge.”
Back in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Cheapside was an enormously popular shopping district. It figures throughout the history of English literature and makes numerous appearances in Charles Dickens’s writing. Charles Dickens Jr. wrote in his 1879 book Dickens’ Dictionary of London: “Cheapside remains now what it was five centuries ago, the greatest thoroughfare in the City of London. Other
Boydell had realised the opportunities presented by the growing market for engravings of well-known artists’ work, and he capitalised on this. His book of 1755 “A Collection of One Hundred and Two Views in England and Wales” was a bestseller throughout Europe.
Boydell’s firm was incredibly successful, and he was almost solely responsible for the complete reversal in the trade balance in art with Europe. By 1785, annual exports of British prints had reached £200,000 a year whilst imports had fallen to a minimal figure. In recognition for his efforts, praised throughout England, Boydell was awarded the Gold Medal by the Royal Academy.
Boydell was forever thinking and innovating, and the idea of a new gallery hung entirely with paintings inspired by scenes from the works of William Shakespeare, was first mooted during a dinner at Boydell’s house one evening in November 1786. He had originally intended simply to publish a new illustrated edition of Shakespeare’s works, but the project grew in his mind, and between 1786 and his death in 1804 he spent over £100,000, commissioning one hundred and sixty seven paintings from thirty seven of the leading artists of the day. Painters like George Romney and Sir Joshua Reynolds enthusiastically supported the ‘Shakespeare Gallery’, eager themselves to establish a tradition of English historical painting. Opened in 1789 on Pall Mall, it was a resounding success and a hit with the public and soon became a fashionable attraction.
In 1789, at the Royal Academy dinner, the Prince of Wales toasted Boydell as “an English tradesman who patronises art better than the Grand Monarque.”
Boydell realised that with his success came a responsibility to give back to a world that had been so good to him, and to the art world in particular, and so it was that as his business prospered, he found time to be intimately involved with the running of the City of London. He became and alderman of the Cheap
Boydell’s Shakespeare Gallery, Pall Mall
Ward in 1782, was elected Master of the Stationer’s Company in 1783, a Sheriff of London in 1785 and ultimately became Lord Mayor in 1790.
Boydell understood that the power and influence that came with such positions could be used as a force for good, and he advocated public and private patronage of the arts. He led by example and frequently donated paintings from his own collections to the Corporation of London where they were hung in the Guildhall.
Boydell played such a significant part in changing how art patronage was viewed in Britain that it is due to his efforts that he is largely attributed with providing the spur for the government to provide
the funds to start the National Gallery.
Boydell passed away in 1804 and his nephew Josiah continued his business for some time after his death. However, the French Revolution proved a very tough time for the export business and in 1818, Josiah was forced to sell the business to Hurst Robinson & Co.
Boydell’s entry in the Dictionary of National Biography concludes with the assessment that “no print publisher before or since has ever exerted as much influence on the course of British Art.”
As we meander through our journey, I thought it would be enjoyable to pause and reflect on some of the most beautiful paintings which we have had the fortune to deal with throughout our history.
Gladwell & Patterson have always endeavoured to ensure that we only deal in the finest quality paintings and sculpture of their time. I trust you enjoy them as much as we did.
CLAUDE MONET
French, (1840-1926)
Le Bassin Aux Nymphéas
Painted in 1919 Oil on Canvas 100 x 104 cms / 39¾” x 41”
GUSTAVE LOISEAU French, (1865-1935) Tournant de Rivière, L’Eure
Painted in 1917 Oil on Canvas 73 x 92 cms / 29” x 36”
PIERRE EUGÈNE MONTÉZIN French, (1874-1946)
La Fanaison Painted circa 1935 Oil on Canvas 200 x 270 cms / 78¾” x 106¼”
Our next custodian of this wonderful old gallery was Henry Graves.
Born at the start of the nineteenth Century on the 16th July 1806, the second son to an established family of printsellers in London, Henry’s grandfather Robert had started the business in Catherine Street, London in 1752. His father, who was also called Robert, then moved the business to Pall Mall, establishing his reputation as the best connoisseur of rare prints of his day. The family business was destined for his elder brother Robert who would take on the mantle of the Graves’ family business, and go on to become one of the finest engravers of his generation.
art world. At the age of sixteen, his father secured him an apprenticeship with the art dealer Samuel Woodburn, where he proved to be a quick learner. He was very driven to prove himself to his family and he had big shoes to try and fill. Upon the completion of his apprenticeship, he joined Messrs Hurst, Robinson & Co.- the successors of Boydell - as the manager of their print department.
Having grown up immersed in the art world, Henry soon realised that the business wasn’t being run successfully by Messrs Hurst, Robinson & Co. following the acquisition from John Boydell’s son Josiah. He was determined to fix it and with his family’s connections in the art world he was able to get the backing and partnership of Francis Graham Moon and Thomas Boys. Between them they acquired the ailing business and much of the print stock in 1826 from Messrs Hurst, Robinson & Co.
For Henry, printselling was in his blood, but being the second son, he was left to follow a different path in the
Under Henry’s guiding hand, the business returned to its roots and with his entrepreneurial spirit and extensive family knowledge, it’s fortunes were soon restored. Moon and Boys soon realised that the young Henry no longer needed their backing and left him to it. Henry would go on to partner with several of his family’s friends. Firstly Richard Hodgson from 1836 to 1841 and then Edward Warmsley from 1941 to 1843 learning from each of them. In 1844 at the age of thirty-eight and with much experience, he finally took full control of the business and renamed it Henry Graves & Co.
Henry had a long, enterprising and successful career, and he came to be recognised as the leading London print seller. He specialised in publishing engravings from pictures by Joseph Mallord Wiliam Turner, David Wilkie, Thomas Lawrence, John Constable, Edwin Landseer, Thomas Faed, Wiliam Powell Frith, Duncan Grant, John Everett Millais, and other contemporary painters.
Henry discovered and quickly recognised the marketability and talent of Landseer and employed the best engravers of the day to reproduce his works. Throughout the course of their partnership, he paid Landseer over £50,000 in copyright fees.
Henry was incredibly successful and published an immense number of engravings by his stable of artists. He saw the value in compiling and publishing important library editions of the works of the most successful of themJoshua Reynolds, Thomas Lawrence, Thomas Gainsborough, Henry Liverseege, and Edwin Landseer which brought him and them further recognition and acclaim.
“Lost and Found” by William MacDuff 1862 A charming painting of two young shoeshine lads studying the prints in the windows of Henry Graves & Co.
Two of Moon’s Engravings of scenes by John Constable R.A. “The Cornfield” and “The Lock” - published on the 1st July 1834
Perhaps the partner who gave Henry Graves the most encouragement and support, Francis Moon was born to a fine Gold and Silversmith, Christopher Moon. Having started his career as apprentice to a print publisher and dealer called Mr. Tugwell who had a gallery in Threadneedle Street. Moon soon rose through the ranks and before long he took over the running of the business when Tugwell retired. He was well renowned in the engraving and print making circles and was particularly good friends with the artist John Constable, producing many engravings of the artist’s work, and establishing his credibility as a result.
Moon was great friends with Robert Graves, and alongside Thomas Boys, he helped the young Henry Graves take over Messrs Hurst, Robinson & Co.’s business, whilst retaining his own gallery on Threadneedle Street.
Moon was intensely involved with life in the City of London, and he was an Alderman and a Sheriff, before rising to Lord Mayor in 1854. He was Master of the Worshipful Company of Stationers from 1854 to 1855 and Master of the Worshipful Company of Loriners from 1855 to 1856. Whilst he was Lord Mayor he received the French Emperor Napolean III and his wife the Empress Eugénie in the Guildhall and he was subsequently honoured as a Chevalier de la Legion d’honneur. He was created a Baronet on the 4th May 1855.
Sir Francis Moon
Sir Francis Moon’s Gallery on Threadneedle Street
Henry Graves & Co. held Royal Warrants to Her Majesty the Queen, their Royal Highnesses The Prince and Princess of Wales, His Royal Highness The Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Teck.
An old label from the back of a print sold at Henry Graves & Co. circa 1870
Henry had married Mary Squire at a young age and they had two sons, Boydell and Algernon. The first named after his predecessor John Boydell, whom he had never met, but had heard great things of when he was at Hurst Robinson & Co. from the old boys who had worked so closely with Boydell. Henry had been inspired by these tales of this exceptional print dealer and those stories left a lasting impression on him. Henry was delighted that both of his sons joined him in the family business.
Upon his death in 1892, Henry bequeathed a portrait of John Boydell by Sir William Beechey to the National Portait Gallery which which now resides in the Museum of London collection. (Illustrated on page 15).
As was customary at the time in the City of London, Henry was intimately involved with giving back to the world that had treated him so well. He was one of the founders of “The Art Journal” and “The Illustrated London News”, and a very active member of the Printsellers’ Association.
Through his patronage with his stable of artists and then further afield, he was deeply involved with the Artists’ General Benevolent Fund, helping and supporting many a young artist on their way in the art world. His fascination with his inspiration John Boydell had led him to become a
governor of the Shakespeare memorial at Stratford, a position he greatly enjoyed.
In the last couple of years of his life, Henry’s ill health caused him to take a back seat at the company which he built, and he passed away at his home on Pall Mall on 23rd August 1892. He was buried at Highgate cemetery in the Graves family vault.
Living throughout most of the nineteenthcentury, Henry steered the company through a fascinating period of growth and change.
Henry Graves’ obituary in the Times Wednesday, 24th August 1892
We regret to announce the death of Mr. Henry Graves, the well-known printseller, which occurred yesterday morning at his house in Pall-mall. Mr. Graves, who had been failing in failing health for two years, was 86 years of age, having been born on July the 16th, 1806, in London. He was the son and grandson of printsellers, and was the younger brother of the late Robert Graves, A.R.A., the distinguished line engraver.
From his boyhood to the end he was associated with the arts, and his death breaks one of the few remaining links that connect the present time with the days of Wilkie, Turner, and Landseer. He began the world on his own account at the age of 16, when he became an assistant to Mr. Woodburn; and soon afterwards he entered the House of Messrs. Hurst and Robinson, who had succeeded to the business founded by the celebrated Alderman Boydell. This was in Cheapside, but in 1825 the firm removed to No.6 Pall-mall. Presently they became involved in difficulties, and Mr. Graves, their manager, joined with Mr. Moon (afterwards Sir Francis Graham Moon, the Lord Mayor) and with Mr. Boys, and bought the business. There were some legal objections, which were overcome: and in 1844, Mr. Graves became head of the firm, and changed its title to that which has it has been universally known for nearly 50 years - the title of Henry Graves and Co.
For a long period Mr. Graves maintained without any question the position which his energy had created, that of the leading publisher of prints. He was in high favour at Court, and superintended the printing of the etchings executed by the Queen and Prince Albert. All the leading artists had him publish their works: beginning with Sir Thomas Lawrence (whom he visited the night before his death), he went on to Turner,
Stanfield, Landseer and Millais. The first of Turner’s pictures that was engraved for him was “The Temple of Jupiter”; many others followed including a portion of the “England and Wales” series and it was he who, when Sir Walter Scott’s financial troubles were gathering, recommended Cadell to engage Turner to make the 70 famous drawings for the “Abbotsford” edition of the Waverley novels. His greatest success, however, was with Landseer, for the reproduction of whose pictures he engaged the best engravers of the day, Samuel Cousins, Thomas Landseer, C.G. Lewis, and many others. For the copyrights alone he paid Sir Edwin more than £50,000 from first to last. He bought from S.W. Reynolds the copyright and plates of the “Works of Sir Joshua,” and added two volumes to them, publishing also at a later date similar works to illustrate Gainsborough, Lawrence, and other artists. When Mr Frith’s popular pictures took the town by storm, Mr. Graves was equal to the occasion, and bought from Flatlow “The Railway Station,” with the copyright, for the great price of £20,000. This picture, it may be mentioned, is now in the Holloway college; all the so-called replicas of it are copies. Another series of subjects that Mr. Graves took up with energy was that of the battle-pieces and military portrairs of Sir Francis Grant, Lady Butler and others; and he also published an immense series of the portraits of Bishops and other dignitaries of the Church.
He was a very active member of the Council of the Artists’ General Benevolent Fund; was Vice-President of the Printsellers’ Association; was thrice Master of the Cutlers’ Company and was in the habit of presenting copies of all his most interesting prints to adorn the walls of the hospitals of London. He is succeeded in his business by his son, Mr. Algernon Graves, the wellknown author of “A Dictionary of Artists” and a great authority upon portraits of the English school.
Algernon had been born at the family home above the gallery on Pall Mall. Immersed in art from the very beginning, he joined his father’s firm soon after a period in his late teens spent in Bonn, Germany learning to speak German. His father had connections through the print trade and the young Algernon was sent off to stay with Henry’s friends and get to know how galleries were operated in Europe.
Upon his return he threw himself into learning more about the business under the expert guidance of his father and soon found a role in researching the catalogues that the company published.
In his late twenties he was introduced to the daughter of a good friend of his fathers, the art dealer John Clowes Grundy from Manchester. Grundy had helped to set up the Printsellers’ Association in London with Henry and had introduced him to many of the northern artists such as William Bradley, Henry Liverseege, David Cox and Samuel Prout. They had a mutual friend in Sir Francis Moon who had introduced them initially.
Algernon fell in love with John’s daughter, Elizabeth, and they were married soon after. A son Herbert Seymour soon arrived, who would eventually go on to help his father in the business.
Algernon greatly enjoyed the academic side of the art world and as the years progressed, he pursued
this with ever increasing success, becoming a much-published writer and documenter.
In 1873, whilst recuperating from an injury, Algernon came up with the idea of creating a catalogue of art that was exhibited in London. Upon his recovery he began putting his idea into reality and worked in earnest on the project, helped immensely by the previous research he had done for other catalogues. In 1884, the first edition of his idea was published entitled “A Dictionary of Artists who have Exhibited Works in the Principal London Exhibitions from 17601880”. A second edition followed in 1885 and a third in 1901.
Algernon Graves’ foreword to his first Dictionary of Contributors; “There seems to be very little need for a preface to this work on the Royal Academy. The book should speak for itself, and if, in practice, it fails to reach the standard of usefulness I have had in view, and used my utmost efforts to maintain, I shall be disappointed. As large undertakings generally spring from small beginnings, and this is no exception to the rule, it may interest the purchasers and users of this book to know that it originated from a small present of wine and a slippery day. On 24th February,1873 (my birthday) my father requested me to take three bottles of wine to my uncle, Mr. Robert Graves, A.R.A., who was very seriously ill, at Grove Terrace, Highgate Road. I started forth full of vigour and
energy with my heavy load; but, owing to a severe snowstorm and the frozen roads I was unable to get a conveyance, so had to walk. On reaching Seven Dials, unfortunately my foot slipped and I fell, and in order to save my precious burden from being injured I held firm to it, and its weight, added to my own, severely injured my left knee; the result was that for eight weeks I was unable to bend my leg, and want of occupation became very irksome to me. As I had the first volume of the Royal Academy catalogues at home for the purposes of my Reynolds book, the idea suddenly occurred to me that to arrange the painters alphabetically would be a valuable work. In half an hour the blue foolscap paper was procured, and without an hour’s delay I started on what afterwards proved to be a thirty years’ labour. By the end of the eight weeks I had completed the first thirty years of the Royal Academy catalogues, and was gratified to find what a useful work I had accidentally commenced.”
Algernon continued to write and publish extensively researched reference books and he made quite the name for himself with some highly influential works such as “The Works of the late Sir Edwin Landseer”, “Treasures of Art in Great Britain”, “A History of the Works of Sir Joshua Reynolds” and a series of books entitled “Art Sales”.
He was soon to be regarded as the leading art historian of his day creating reference sources that began the modern discipline of provenance research. He would often write to members of the aristocracy and known owners of paintings he was writing about to try and track down their whereabouts for his exhibitions.
In 1890, with Henry’s health deteriorating, Algernon took over as chairman and of over the day to day running of the company. He was supported by the superb team which his father had built up over the years, including the managing director Mr. Thomas.
Henry Graves & Co. was, by that stage, quite a large enterprise, employing around twenty-five people including its directors and they had many different facets to the business. The main gallery was Number 6, Pall Mall and they operated an art consultancy at 42, Old Bond Street. There was a further gallery at 44, Cherry Street in Birmingham, which ran from 1895 to 1907 and another gallery in Paris at 18, Rue Caumartin.
Algernon soon realised that the business was going through some difficult financial times, and whilst he remained at the helm following his father’s death in 1892, he began to bring in other directors who he respected in the art world to help him restore the fortunes of the company. Running the business was never really his thing and the new directors did their best at returning the company to profitability and letting Algernon carry on with his research and writing. One of these directors was Alfred Thomas Gladwell.
The foreword from “A dictionary of artists who have exhibited works in the principal London exhibitions from 1760 to 1893” - compiled by Algernon Graves and published in 1895;
“When I began to compile a “Dictionary of Artists,” my intention was to issue a new edition every ten years; but the responsibilities of the publishing house of Henry Graves and Co. which had been managed by my father nearly until his death in 1892, compelled me to abandon that idea, and decide to bring the work, in its present more copious and enlarged form, down to 1893, including the Winter as well as the Summer Exhibitions of every important London gallery.”
The new directors continued to steer the business through the turn of the century, working well with the gallery in Birmingham which held exhibitions of the work of the Birmingham Arts Circle and many other artists groups, and with the gallery in Paris.
A letter to General Pitt Rivers from Algernon Graves trying to track down this portrait by Sir Thomas Gainsborough
A Poster for an Exhibition at Henry Graves Gallery ay 18, Rue de Caumartin, Paris
The staff of Henry Graves & Co. circa 1900
Indeed, it was impossible to ignore the French Revolution and the change that was going on in the art world in Paris at that time. The First Impressionist Exhibition had taken place in 1874 and towards the latter part of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century, Paris was the centre of the art world. It still took incredible foresight and bravery to open a gallery there but that is what Henry Graves & Co. had done at 18 Rue Caumartin.
Sadly, Algernon and Elizabeth’s son, Herbert Seymour Graves passed away in 1898 and with that great loss (they had worked very closely together on researching several of his father’s catalogues), Algernon had no descendant to leave the business to.
By 1906, Algernon’s fellow directors had restored the health of the company to such a degree that the board decided that the company should be put up for sale. The benefits of this were threefold – it would allow a new team to build on the good name of Henry Graves & Co., it would Algernon to return to focusing on the writing and publishing that he so enjoyed, and it would provide much needed finances to Algernon to clear the debts that he had inherited from his father. A new company was formed to buy the assets of the old company and the leading art houses of the day were approached for applications to buy the business. The business had been valued by Alfred Thomas Gladwell in preparation for the sale and the successful bidder
was Gladwell & Company.
Elizabeth died a few years later and Algernon drew his solace from his research, working in conjunction with his friends at Thomas Agnew & Sons on Bond Street. Graves’ publications were notable for the new information they contained. In “The Royal Academy of Arts”, for example, Graves thanked the Earl of Rosebery for permission to study his set of catalogues annotated by Horace Walpole, and in his “A History of the Works of Sir Joshua Reynolds PRA. (1899–1901)” Graves stated that he was the first to utilize information from the artist’s payment ledgers (which he owned) and from private sources, including Reynolds’s descendants.
In later life he was to remarry Madeline Wakeling Walker in 1919.
Algernon died on the 5th February 1922 at his home at 77, New Cavendish Street and was buried at the Brompton Cemetery. His obituary in the Times, the following day read;
“Following close on the publication of his concluding volume of “Art Sales” comes the announcement of the death of Algernon Graves, a member of the family which, since the days of the eighteenth century, has been intimately connected with the world of art. For the greater part of his life a partner in the famous firm of Henry Graves & Co., in Pall Mall, he thence passed some years ago to the firm of Thomas Agnew & Sons, devoting a great portion of his time to the literary and historical side of his vocation.
An old label from the back of a print sold at Henry Graves & Co. c.1870
His compilations, beginning with his work on “Royal Academy Exhibitors” and following with similar volumes dealing with the Society of Artists and the British Institution, were invaluable. His compiled works relating to sales and prices represent unremitting labor and research and possess a reliability and thoroughness not invariably met with in works of this nature. He leaves behind him further manuscripts relating to the less wellknown art societies, which will probably be published later.”
HENRI LE SIDANER French, (1862-1939)
Contemplation au Crépuscule Painted in 1898 Oil on Canvas 65 x 81 cms / 26” x 32”
HENRI LE SIDANER French, (1862-1939)
ALe Matin, Villefranche-sur-Mer Painted in 1927 Oil on Canvas 92 x 73 cms / 36” x 29”
ALFRED SISLEY
French, (1839-1899)
Le Loing à Moret Painted in 1885 Oil on Canvas 46 x 55½ cms / 18” x 21½”
Whilst Henry Graves & Co. were advancing their business in the West End of London on Pall Mall, over in the heart of the City of London a family of art dealers were carrying on their established business in a beautiful gallery on Gracechurch Street.
On the 4th of October 1811, Thomas Henry Wade Gladwell was born to Thomas and Ann Gladwell. The third of four children, Thomas Henry was their only son, and grew up alongside his sisters Ann, Mary, and Liza. Thomas and Ann were earnest folk of independent means, and they lived in Southwark on Newington Causeway. A very talented carver and gilder, Thomas Snr. worked from a small workshop at his home in which he created fine frames for the picture business alongside being called upon to work on the grand buildings which were being constructed all around London. Immersed in a world of excellent craftsmanship, Thomas Henry was exposed to beautiful works of art and fine things from his early childhood.
The young Thomas was christened at St. Sepulchre on the 9th of February 1812, and he grew up to become a handsome, strapping lad. A quick learner, he was fascinated by the pictures and prints from all around the world which he saw in the print shops and galleries around his home and just across the river in the City of London.
Thomas and Ann had installed a strong work ethic and a sense of wonder in their son, and with his unbridled enthusiasm and curiosity it wasn’t long before he became a young apprentice at a publisher in the City.
During his apprenticeship, he had realised that there was a huge demand for the services of printers. With his father and mother’s guidance and words of wisdom Thomas started his own business in a small shop just down the road from his family home at 39, Newington Causeway in 1834. He had saved enough money to buy a small printing machine and with the contacts he had made during his apprenticeship, he was soon inundated with orders.
Business was thriving, but Thomas was ambitious, and he had dreamed for years of having his own gallery. He knew that the real business was done across the river in the City, and so when an opportunity arose just one short year later to buy a larger premises in its very heart, he stretched himself to the very limit. With his father’s help he opened his Fine Art Gallery at 21, Gracechurch Street in 1836.
Initially the gallery specialised in fine prints, books, and stationery, but with his father’s knowledge of carving and gilding, it wasn’t long before they had added frame making, carving, and gliding to their repertoire.
Thomas was a shrewd businessman with an instinctive knowledge of where to take the business next and how to adapt and grow with the times. He had a knack for marketing and a real passion for the art world he inhabited. As a result, his clientele was deeply loyal to him, and word spread quickly of the quality of craftsmanship that his firm produced.
The demand for both the frames and the
carving and gilding services was high, and these arms of the business soon outgrew their old manufactory in Newington Causeway,. This initially moved to larger premises at 3, Mint Street, Borough in 1837 and then again to even larger premises at 156 Borough High Street in 1939.
By 1840, ever attentive to needs of his clientele and with a team of master craftsmen now in his employ, Thomas could be found advertising on his billhead a range of “gilt cornices and room mouldings, engraving and printing neatly executed, ‘Ornamental KitCat & Three-Quarter Frames always ready’ modern prints framed in maple and gold, a liberal discount to artists and mouldings to any pattern for gilders.”
So successful was Thomas’ gallery at 21 Gracechurch Street, that by 1846 he had opened a second shop at 87, Gracechurch Street.
The mid-nineteenth century was characterised by its blistering pace of technological change, and Thomas was clearly aware of how important it was to keep his gallery at the forefront of progress. Thomas quickly recognised and embraced the growing market for photographs and stereographs, and he started to import these along with stereoscopes and cameras from Europe.
Interest in these new phenomena was so strong that by 1860 Thomas had realised that he couldn’t keep them all under the same roof as his more traditional galleries and so he reorganised, taking all the stereoscopic department to Number 87 and returning Number 21 to its more traditional roots.
There is no doubt that Thomas was a successful entrepreneur. His ability to see new markets and to adapt and change the business to meet the needs of his clients is a skill found in few. Timing is often crucial in all these things and Thomas was helped by what was going
on around him in the London of his day. In the early 1800s, London was home to over one million people, and it was the largest city in the world. The centre of government of a massive empire, it was growing at a phenomenal rate. The start of Thomas’ business coincided with the coming of the railways to London which brought with them a new influx of potential customers. Additionally, with only two bridges across the Thames, the situation of the gallery in Gracechurch Street in the centre of the old city ensured that there was a large clientele for the services which Thomas provided. When one sets this location alongside Thomas’ talents as a businessman and his passion as an art dealer it becomes easy to understand the tremendous success that he achieved.
Thomas had a happy and stable family life. After marrying his childhood sweetheart Ann Fox from Bromley at Lambeth Parish Church on the 1st of June, they moved to a charming little house at 124, Kennington Park Road and had four sons – Henry William (b. 1834), Arthur Edward (b. 1836), Charles (b. 1839) and Alfred Thomas (born 1841).
As the gallery prospered and grew, Thomas was delighted that three of his sons joined him and between 1850 and 1860, Henry, Arthur and (Alfred) Thomas all helped their father to run his enterprises, learning the ropes and being taught about the gallery.
Although they were very different characters, they all shared his passion for art and a nose for business. Thomas knew that part of their training should be to have their own parts of the company to oversee, and he saw this as a sensible step in the growth of the business. As each progressed to a level of expertise with which Thomas was happy, he would help them set up their own gallery to run.
Henry William started his gallery at 11, Poultry in 1858 before opening a stereoscopic department at 5, Ludgate Hill in 1859.
Subsequently, Arthur set up at 1 Pall Mall Place in 1872 before moving to 106, The Strand in 1875. Both Henry William and Arthur’s galleries prospered, each becoming successful enterprises in their own right.
As with many younger brothers, (Alfred) Thomas remained with this father at the Cheapside branch helping to run the business as his father grew older, initially specialising in the stationery and print selling departments before introducing the selling of musical scores as a further arm to the business.
Henry and his wife Sussanah had provided Thomas with his first grandchild on the 5th of October 1857, also named Henry William (Harry), and many more were to follow. Thomas was an inspirational and imposing figure to his grandchildren. They must have had the same sense of awe and wonder when they visited his gallery that we did when we visited our grandfather in his gallery as we were growing up.
Thomas took great delight in sharing his knowledge and telling them fabulous stories of his life and experiences. He certainly left an everlasting impression on Harry.
By the time of Thomas’s death in 1879, the business had firmly established itself as one of the leading art galleries and frame makers in London. Thomas’s vision and pioneering, entrepreneurial spirit had made him a wealthy man. He left an estate valued at just under £16,000 (well over five million pounds in today’s money).
He bequeathed the freehold of the gallery in Gracechurch Street, the manufactory in Borough High Street and the superb business which he had founded, nurtured, and made such a success of, to his three sons who had joined him in the art business. He died safe in the knowledge his enterprise was in good hands.
Henry William Gladwell(1834-1893)
Thomas’ sons - Henry, Arthur, and (Alfred) Thomas had some big shoes to fill, yet they took on the mantle of running the extensive enterprise with the same vigour and innovation which their father had taught them.
They focused on the main gallery at 20-21 Gracechurch Street, renaming it Gladwell Brothers in 1880 and hosting regular exhibitions there. Their extensive network of fine artists continued to expand and through their connections with the importers of the European-made stereoscopes they started to venture further and further into European art circles in search of more variety and quality to tempt their clientele.
The last quarter of the nineteenth century saw a marked shift from the aristocratic collecting of previous centuries to a much more plutocratic base. The Industrial Revolution had brought with it the opportunity to amass great wealth and its associated trappings. The Gladwell Brothers were in the best position to take advantage of this thirst for fine things and wholeheartedly embraced it. Their varied experience and common goal made them a formidable force.
Excellently trained by their father, the brothers’ skills complimented each other well. Henry William had a nose for business and was very personable. Arthur and Alfred were great at the marketing and promotion
side and their clients came from far and wide to see the exhibitions that they put on. They very cleverly created an aura of exclusivity at their exhibitions, and yet they made everyone feel at home. They promoted a lifestyle and a dream that everyone aspired to and wanted to be part of.
The First Impressionist Exhibition of 1874 and the growth of international fine art dealers who travelled between continents opened the art market to a much wider audience. The Gladwell Brothers’ connections with European dealers and publishers such as the dealer Théodore Vibert, the publisher Alfred Cadart, and the dealer Adolphe Goupil were vital in maintaining their position as one of the most ground-breaking, interesting, and knowledgeable art galleries in London.
The brothers saw that there was an everincreasing appetite for original oil paintings and watercolours and that the tastes of the time were changing, and so they subtly and elegantly introduced more and more originals from the best artists of their day into their exhibitions. The European element that they added complimented both their historical selection of European prints and their original works of art from the leading British artists. It was a natural transition and ensured that the gallery remained relevant whilst retaining the quality for which it was renowned.
Thomas Henry Wade Gladwell (4th October 1811 - 1879 Lambeth)
Christened in St. Sepulchre on 9th Febryary 1812 m. Mary (née Fox) from Bromley at Lambeth Parish Church, 1st June 1833 Lived at 124, Kennington Park Road
Had a Gallery T.H.GLADWELL at 19 & 21 Gracechurch Street from 1834 and at 87 Gracechurch Street from 1846 and at Newington Causeway
Publishers, Printsellers, Carvers, Gilders and Picture Frame Manufacturer and City Stereoscopic Depot at 87, Gracechurch Street manufactory at 3 Mint Street 1837-1839 then Borough High Street from 1839
(1834 Lambeth -1893)
m. Sussanah Warnes on 6th August 1856
Lived at 104 High Road, Lee, Lewisham Has gallery at 11 Poultry in 1858 5 Ludgate Street in 1859
Arther Edward Gladwell (1836 -1889)
Gallery at 106 The Strand until at least 1875 1 Pall Mall Place in 1872
Charles Gladwell (1839-1870) Scholar
Henry William Gladwell (5th October 1857- 2nd November 1927)
“Harry”
m. Caroline Beatrice née Arney (1857-1943) on 31st March 1879 in Deptford St. Lived at 104 High Road, Lee, Lewisham
Susannah Eleanor
Died after falling from her horse on Blackheath - mentioned in the letters of Vincent Van Gogh
Mary Louise Gladwell (1859-)
Twin sister of Susannah
(1st April 1880 - 27th July 1882)
Died aged 2 - buried at Nunhead Cemetary
Beatrice Mary Gladwell (12th November 1883 - )
m. Eustace Vivian Paul Connolly
Arney
(22nd October 1885 -1967)
m. Doreen née Brown Art Dealer - Cheapside, Hammersmith Knightsbridge and 22 High Street Chiswick Had 3 daughters
(1834-1879)
Gallery at 20 & 21 Gracechurch Street Manufactory at Mint Street then 156 Borough High St. City Stereoscopic at 87 Gracechurch Street
Alfred Thomas Gladwell (1841 Lambeth -1907)
Worked as a Stationer and Publisher for his father until 1871, then a seller of music and books. Stereoscopic Department at 87 Gracechurch Street
Gladwell’s New Gallery
Gladwell & Company (1891-1893)
Gallery at 73 Old Broad Street and 1891- 5 Fenchurch Street
Jessie Arthur Gladwell (1866-)
Mary b. 1846 Scholar
Lived 12, Walerand Road and later with Alfred there
Gladwell Brothers (1880-1891)
Gallery at 20 & 21 Gracechurch Street Manufactory at 156 Borough High St.
Gladwell Brothers (1891-1907)
Gallery at 20 & 21 Gracechurch Street Manufactory at 156 Borough High St. Then at 164 Fenchurch Street Then at 8 Eastcheap
Edward Ernest Gladwell (1876-)
Charles Victor Gladwell
b. 31st December 1891
m. Mary Emigrated to Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Had 3 sons
Algernon Leighton Gladwell (12th January 1893-16th August 1977)
Joined Gladwell & Company in 1909 bought Henry Graves & Company in 1926 then sold Gladwells to Herbert Fuller in 1964 Had 2 wives and sons
Gladwell & Company (1891-2012)
20 & 21, Gracechurch Street until 1893 70 & 71, Cheapside 1893-1924 68, Queen Victoria Street 1924-2012 5, Beauchamp Place 2012227 Regent Street between 1892-1924
Henry William Gladwell (1834 Lambeth -1893)
m. Sussanah Warnes on 6th August 1856
Lived at 104 High Road, Lee, Lewisham Has gallery at 11 Poultry in 1858 5 Ludgate Street in 1859
Henry William Gladwell
(5th October 1857- 2nd November 1927) “Harry” m. Caroline Beatrice née Arney (1857-1943) on 31st March 1879 in Deptford St. Lived at 104 High Road, Lee, Lewisham
Susannah Eleanor Gladwell (1859-1876)
died after falling from her horse on Blackheath at 16
Mary Louise Gladwell (1859-)
Twin sister of Susannah
Jessie Arthur Gladwell (1866-) Decorator
Edward Ernest Gladwell (b.24/09/1876)
Arthur b.1870
Died as a young child aged 1 or 2
Florence b.1873 Tailoress
Arther Edward Gladwell (1836 Lambeth - 26/09/1899)
m. Sarah Jane Foan (1839-1870)
Worked as a Stationer and Publisher for his father until 1871, then a seller of music and books. Stereoscopic Department at 87 Gracechurch Street
Lucy b.1873 Academic
Ada b.1874 Seamstress Mary b.1879
Alfred Thomas Gladwell (1841 Lambeth -1906)
m. Mary
Ernest b.1875 Musician and pianoforte tuner
Worked as a Stationer and Publisher for his father until 1871, then a seller of music and books. Worked in the business longer than his older brother Henry 87 Gracechurch Street
Pauline b.1873 Milliner
Helena b.1873 Coiffeur
The brothers knew that they had to keep their exhibitions interesting for their clientele, and so throughout the 1880s they consistently broadened their range.
The 1880s saw the brothers cement the business’ position as the leading art gallery in the City of London. However, Arthur’s untimely death in 1889 at the age of fiftytwo sadly broke up the superb partnership the brothers had, and the remaining brothers lost a little of their joie de vivre.
Henry had joined the family business when he was sixteen and as the eldest son had learnt the business from this father, Thomas. He was a driven and successful young man and he found love at a young age. He married Sussanah Warnes when he was twentytwo on the 6th of August 1856. They lived at 104 High Road, Lee, Lewisham and had five children. Their firstborn Harry arrived in 1857, just after Henry’s apprenticeship and training had finished, and just before he started his own gallery on Ludgate Hill. Then along came twin girls Susannah and Mary in 1859, before Jessie Arthur arrived in 1866, and Edward Ernest a few years later.
They used to marvel at their father and uncles’ galleries, but most of all at the ‘grand’ gallery of their grandfather on Gracechurch Street which they used to visit as small children. It was such a fascinating world full of wonder and beauty, and it enthralled Harry and left a lasting impression.
By the early 1800s, the family had moved to a handsome house at 73 Old Broad Street and Henry would take the short walk through
the city to the Gracechurch Street gallery every day.
Yet, tragedy was to strike on the 17th of August 1876 when the eldest of their twin daughters Sussanah was out riding her horse on Blackheath common. Just seventeen years of age, and ‘full of life, with dark eyes and hair’ she fell from her horse and took a bad knock to the head, dying a few hours later. Harry’s friend Vincent van Gogh happened to be over in England to visit the family when this occurred and he documents the immense grief that overtook them, in his letters to his brother Theo.
Sussanah’s twin sister Mary and her younger brothers Jessie and Edward never really recovered from the loss of their sister. They were still living at home in their late twenties and early thirties when their father died. The only one to have flown the nest was Harry some fourteen years previously.
Indeed, in Henry’s will he makes provision to look after the three younger children and makes little mention of Harry who has already taken on the mantle of the Gladwells business from his father, with his own successful branch in Fenchurch Street. Henry owned the freehold and the leasehold of 20 and 21 Gracechurch Street and in his will he dictates that this should be used to provide an income for his three remaining dependent children and his wife.
Arthur focused on his business and that of the gallery for much of his young life and didn’t wed until much later at the age of thirty-three, when he married Sarah Jane Foan on the 29th of September 1870. Sarah was a seamstress and a tailoress some eight years Arthur’s junior and she was keen to start a family. They were also to have five
children, their firstborn Arthur arrived later that year, but very sadly died as a young child. Then Florence arrived in 1873, Ada followed the next year, Ernest another year later and then Mary four years after that.
The family lived initially above Arthur’s gallery at 106, The Strand, but as business at Arthur’s gallery thrived, and in the late 1870s he and his wife bought a separate house at 24 Great Ormond Street where they spent ten happy years.
Sadly in 1889, Arthur was to die quite suddenly at the young age of fifty-two. It was devastating for the whole of his family and it broke up the excellent partnership that the Gladwell Brothers had.
The heartbroken Sarah moved back to her hometown of Bridport, where she started her own clothing shop. Their daughters Florence and Ada went with their mother, and then followed in her footsteps to become a tailoress and a dressmaker. Ernest had a gift for music and used it to start a career, first as a pianoforte tuner and then a professional musician. None of Arthur’s children followed him into the business and his gallery on the Strand was assumed into his brother’s business.
The youngest of the three brothers to go into the business was Alfred. He followed in his brothers footsteps and joined the family business at the age of sixteen, working his way up through the various departments. He started his employment at the manufactory on Borough High Street and in time became the Head of the Stereoscopic department at 87 Gracechurch Street. He added music and books to his gallery’s repertoire during the 1870s and his little
corner of Gracechurch Street became a great success.
Alfred lived at home with his parents until his marriage to Lucy Elizabeth Sophia Brammall in 1871. Lucy was the daughter of Thomas and Sussanah Brammall, well-todo folks from Gloucester. Alfred was thirty at the time and like Arthur, he had put all his energy into the family business. Lucy was six years younger than Alfred and they started a family later that year with the birth of the first of three daughters: Lucy. Pauline and Helena followed at two-year intervals after that.
The family lived near to their relatives at 16 Dartmouth Terrace in Blackheath, and Alfred used to make the daily commute to the gallery on Gracechurch Street.
Tragedy struck when the children were just eleven, nine and seven when their mother Lucy died in late 1882. Alfred was left to bring up the children by himself.
Juggling home life and his work, Arthur and his sister Mary, who was also a widower, moved in together so that Mary could help to bring up all their children, and Arthur could focus on work. Mary was a great help to him, enabling Alfred to continue to support their families through the gallery. Arthur continued to run Gladwell Brothers after the deaths of his middle brother in 1889 and his elder brother in 1893. He carried on working right up until his death in 1906, but as was the form in those days, none of his daughters came in to work at the gallery; Lucy became an academic, Pauline a milliner and Helena became a coiffeur.
Of the twelve children that the three Gladwell brothers had, it was only Harry that came through to run the business and become our next giant.
Born the eldest of four children, Harry knew from a very young age that he wanted to be involved in the art business. Brought up as a hard-working, inquisitive, and religious lad, he yearned to join his father and uncles in the business.
He used to love visiting the Gracechurch Street gallery and was fascinated with the art and what went on there. He would
beg his father to let him come to work with him and when there would listen to the tales of all the staff. Constantly reading and learning about the art market, and the history of great artists from the past, Harry was enthralled and enticed by this wonderful world.
So it was that in 1873, with his father’s guidance and at the tender age of sixteen,
he started work as an apprentice in his uncle Arthur’s gallery on the Strand. He would sit for hours asking questions of his father, his grandfather and his uncles working out just how every facet of the business ran. He was a sponge for knowledge and desperate to know more.
He soon moved to his father’s shop on Gracechurch Street where he continued to learn the ropes. The next step in Harry’s development was to learn how galleries were run elsewhere, and so his father secured him an apprenticeship with his friend, the dealer Adolphe Goupil in Paris.
In 1875, aged eighteen, the intrepid Harry travelled to Paris. One can only imagine how exciting this must have been – travelling overseas, exploring a new, energetic and bustling city. In the mid to late nineteenth century, Paris had become the principal European centre for artistic innovation. The streets and cafes were full of artists, writers, and musicians, all feeding off each other’s creativity; the buzz of the city must
have been infectious.
Another apprentice at Goupils at the time was Vincent van Gogh, and Harry took a room in the same lodging house as Vincent. The pair hit it off immediately and became firm friends, Vincent taking the young Harry under his wing and showing him around the city. Vincent delighted in Harry’s idiosyncratic appearance, describing him as ‘thin as a stick with a pair of large red protruding ears’, and his joie de vivre. They talked about life in London and Holland and bonded over their love of food, family, art and religion. Harry and Vincent were to remain friends for many years, with each visiting the other’s family in their respective homelands.
When Vincent left Paris in late 1876 and came to London, he worked at Gladwells for Harry’s father Henry William in the gallery for a number of months.
Harry would return from Goupils in December 1877 after his two-year apprenticeship there, and he joined his father in the family
It is worth pausing our tale here to celebrate the extraordinary friendship between Harry Gladwell and Vincent Van Gogh.
Harry had served apprenticeships learning the business with both his uncle Arthur in his gallery on the Strand, and his father and uncle Thomas in their gallery on Cheapside, and he was keen to further expand his knowledge. With his father’s help, he secured an apprenticeship at the family friend Adolphe Goupil’s famous gallery in Paris. So it was that in 1875, aged eighteen, the young Harry travelled to Paris to begin his time there.
Harry took an apartment in Montmartre that Goupils kept for their apprentices and living in the same building was another employee of the firm Vincent Van Gogh. There was an initial curiosity between the two, with both being foreigners in the city. But Vincent took Harry, four years his junior, under his wing and they were to become firm friends.
Vincent’s first impressions show the intrigue he had in the new arrival; “As you know, I live in Montmartre. Also living here is a young Englishman, an employee of the firm, eighteen years old, the son of an art dealer in London, who will probably enter his father’s firm later on. He had never been away from home and was tremendously boorish, especially the first few weeks he was here; he ate, for example, mornings, afternoons and evenings 4-6 sous worth of bread and supplemented that with pounds of apples and pears. In spite of all that he’s as lean as a pole, with two strong rows of teeth, large red lips, sparkling eyes, a couple of large, usually red, jug-ears, and shorn head (black hair).”
11th October 1875 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
Vincent was so passionate about Paris and the exhibitions and art that could be found there. He delighted in sharing this passion with his new protégé and friend guiding him in his taste of paintings. The two would often visit exhibitions and soon moved in together to share digs and save money. They got on very well and talked long into the night about art and religion. Just a few short weeks later Vincent was to write this to his brother; “…My worthy Englishman now cooks barley porridge every morning; he got twenty-five pounds of it from his father. How I wish you could try it sometime. I’m really very glad to have met that boy. I’ve learned from him and was able, in turn, to draw his attention to a danger that was threatening him.
He had never been away from home and, although he didn’t let it show, he had an unwholesome (though noble) yearning for his father and his home. He yearned with a yearning that belongs to God and heaven. Idolatry is not love. He who loves his parents must follow them on life’s path. He now sees this clearly and, with some genuine sorrow in his heart, he has the courage and the desire to go on. Has Pa
already said to you what he once said to me? Keep thy heart above all things; for out of it are the issues of life. Let us do that, then, and with God’s help we shall succeed.
I wish you well, and believe me ever
Your loving brother Vincent”
11th November 1875 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
My worthy Englishman (his name is Gladwell) is also going home for a couple of days. You can imagine how much he longs for it; he has never really been away from home before.
Is it as cold there as it is here? Gladwell and I are very cosy by our little stove, mornings and evenings.
I’ve taken up pipe-smoking again, and sometimes it tastes just as good as it used to.
4th December 1875 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
Whilst Vincent didn’t really enjoy the strict environment at Goupils and was so very distracted by all that Paris had to offer, Harry seemed to excel in it. Vincent suffered also from terrible homesickness and yearned to see his family and especially his brother Theo whom he missed greatly. So much so that a week or two after he wrote this letter in the winter of 1875, he took off to see his family in Etten during the gallery’s busiest time.
Upon his return, the manager of Goupils Mr. Boussod called him into his office and gave him his three months’ notice. This came as a great relief to Vincent, and he shows no regret about leaving his job, but only relief at this turn of events. He delights in the fact that his friend Harry is being trained up to take his position in the gallery. Vincent stayed in Paris for several months after but soon he yearned to travel and see more of England that his friend Harry had told him so much about.
Vincent travelled extensively often walking long distances, but he did miss his wonderful Paris and his dear friend Harry. They were to remain very good friends; “My dear Theo, Yesterday I went to see Gladwell, who’s home for a few days. Something very sad happened to his family: his sister, a girl full of life, with dark eyes and hair, seventeen years old, fell from her horse while riding on Blackheath. She was unconscious when they picked her up and died five hours later without regaining consciousness.
I went there as soon as I heard what had happened and that Gladwell was at home. I left here yesterday morning at 11 o’clock, and had a long walk to Lewisham, the road went from one end of London to the other. At 5 o’clock I was at Gladwell’s. I’d gone to their gallery first, but it was closed.
They had all just come back from the funeral, it was a real house of mourning and it did me good to be there. I had feelings of embarrassment and shame at seeing that deep, estimable grief, for these people are estimable.
Blessed are they that mourn, blessed are they that are ‘sorrowful, yet always rejoicing’,
blessed are the pure in heart, for God comforts the simple. Blessed are they that find Love on their path, who are bound intimately with one another by God, for to them all things work together for good. I talked with Harry for a long time, until the evening, about all kinds of things, about the kingdom of God and about his Bible, and we walked up and down on the station, talking, and those moments before parting we’ll probably never forget.
We know each other so well, his work was my work, the people he knows there I know too, his life was my life, and it was given to me to see so deeply into their family affairs, I think, because I believe that I love them, not so much because I know the particulars of those affairs, but because I feel the tone and feeling of their being and life.
So we walked back and forth on that station, in that everyday world, but with a feeling that was not everyday.
They don’t last long, such moments, and we soon had to take leave of each other. It was a beautiful sight, looking out from the train over London, that lay there in the dark, St Paul’s and other churches in the distance. I stayed in the train until Richmond and walked along the Thames to Isleworth, that was a lovely walk, on the left the parks with their tall poplars, oaks and elms, on the right the river, reflecting the tall trees. It was a beautiful, almost solemn, evening; I got home at quarter past 10....
...I’m still full of yesterday; it must be good to be the brother of the man I saw so sorrowful yesterday, I mean that it must ‘be blessed to mourn’ with manly sorrow, how I’d have liked to comfort the father, but I was embarrassed, though I could talk to the son. There was something hallowed in that house yesterday.”
Isleworth, 18th August 1876 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
The young Vincent must have made a good impression at this time of great sorrow for the Gladwell family, for it wasn’t long before Harry’s father Henry had taken him under his wing and employed him now and again in the Gladwell’s gallery on Cheapside and at their manufactory in Borough High Street. Whilst Harry continued his apprenticeship in Paris, Vincent was working with the Gladwells back in London where he felt much more at home.
“…It’s night-time now, I’m still doing a bit of work for the Gladwells at Lewisham, copying out one thing and another etc.; one must strike while the iron is hot and soften the human heart when it is burning within us.”
Isleworth, 25th November 1876 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
“As I sit writing to you in my room and it’s so very, very quiet and I look around at your portraits and the prints on the wall, Christus Consolator and Good Friday and the Women at the sepulchre and The old Huguenot and The prodigal son by Ary Scheffer and the little boat on a stormy sea and one etching, an autumn landscape, view of the heath, which I got from Harry Gladwell on my birthday.”
Isleworth, 17th November 1876 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
The pair had often talked about Vincent’s family and home back in the Netherlands, and so when Vincent was to travel home to see his family in Amsterdam in September 1877, they had
made plans for Harry to came across from Paris to visit him. The pair had clearly missed each other’s companionship and had much to catch up upon:
“My dear Theo, It felt wonderful to hear Gladwell’s voice in the hall as I sat upstairs studying and to see him a moment later and to shake his hand. Yesterday we took a nice walk through the main streets and past most of the churches, and got up this morning before five to see the people coming to the dockyard and afterwards walked to Zeeburg and also saw a cemetery and went to the Trippenhuis (twice) and he alone to Van der Hoop, and he was also at Uncle Cor’s gallery (who isn’t in town, however) and with Mendes in the room. Now we also have plans to go to Uncle Stricker’s (because I’ve been invited to eat there today and will simply risk it and take him along), and if we have time also to see Vos and Kee. And I would also like very much to go with him to Bickerseiland, but perhaps there won’t be time. Have also strongly suggested that he go to Haarlem to see the paintings by Frans Hals, and now he’s going there and not to Antwerp as he had planned, but will save Belgium for later and is concentrating now exclusively on Holland.
We also spent a lot of time in the little study and talked of things new and old. When he’s sitting beside me I again feel the same feeling that drew me to him so often, as though he were a son of the same family and a brother in faith because he loves ‘the man of sorrows and acquainted with grief’.
….Received from him Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress, that is an asset, as is Bossuet, Oraison Funèbres, which I recently bought very cheaply, and The Imitation by T. A. Kempis in Latin, which I got from Vos and which I hope to be able to read in Latin someday.
He read here various bits of Bungener, Esquiros, Lamennais, Souvestre, Lamartine (Cromwell), and took pleasure in the lithographs after Bosboom, we bought one from a Jew, and he gave me instructions to buy some more for him when the opportunity presents itself.
I sincerely hope that you’ll have a pleasant evening with him, and I believe that the more you seek in him the more you will find in him.
We talked about this and that, and what we said to each other is this: many, having come to a point in life where one must make a choice about life, have chosen for their part ‘the love of Christ and poverty’, or rather ‘give me neither poverty nor riches, feed me with bread convenient for me’. The time together flew past for me, and I wished we could have stayed together a little longer; but it cannot be, and everyone must return to his way and continue to do whatsoever the hand findeth to do in the calling wherein he was called, and I for my part am thankful from the bottom of my heart that I was able to see him again, and found in him that which drew me to him. He told me that you will certainly make the trip with the nouveautés, probably in about four weeks’ time, so I also hope to see you again then.
I sincerely hope that he’ll have pleasant and good memories of his visit to Holland, it’s courageous of him to have persisted with that plan.
Give my regards to your housemates, have a good evening with him; should wish for you to be attached to him as I feel attached to him at the moment, and accept in
Amsterdam 7th September 1877 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
It becomes apparent from Vincent’s letters, the passion that the two shared for religion and for their intense appreciation and enjoyment of art and literature. How they delighted in the beauty of creation and in sharing the love in their respective families.
Theo also spent some time in Paris during the autumn of 1877 and following their meeting in Amsterdam, Theo regularly met up with Harry in Paris.
Harry and Vincent continued their regular correspondence and sent each other maps, prints, drawings, and books which they knew the other would find interesting. It is apparent that they were soulmates and took great delight in their friendship. That Christmas, Vincent sent Harry a beautiful hand drawn map by Steiler of Scotland which he sent to Theo to post on to Harry.
“I already had some, however, so I bought something else with the money, namely another map by Stieler, namely Scotland alone. At present I can get them singly at Seyffardt’s, but there probably won’t always be that opportunity. I’ve drawn that map and so have it double, and because I did want to give Harry Gladwell a Christmas present I hope to send it to you for him, to enclose when a crate goes to Paris. “
Amsterdam 9th December 1877 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
Harry’s time at Goupils and in Paris was ending, and he was to return in early December 1877 to London to join the family business as planned. He had learnt a great deal and had experienced the art world from many different and interesting angles and Harry was excited to bring all this knowledge and enthusiasm back to his family.
Vincent and Harry seemed to drift apart over the coming years, whether this was due to Vincent’s ever increasing religious fervour starting to become too much for Harry or whether he simply became too busily involved with the running of the family business remains a mystery. Sadly, Harry’s letters from Vincent, if indeed he kept them, would have been destroyed during the Second World War when the gallery’s archives were hit by an incendiary device. The last mention of Harry in Vincent’s much documented letters comes in March 1878“Wrote to Harry Gladwell again this week, since he didn’t answer my last letter and I wanted so much to know what he’s doing and what he’s planning to do.
I still have hopes of his becoming a minister, and if that happens he’ll do it well, of that I’m convinced, but it would be no easy thing for him to carry it off.”
Amsterdam 3rd March 1878 - A letter from Vincent to his brother Theo
As Harry went out into the world to gain experience in the artworld and in a broader life in general, he was fortunate to have stumbled across such a fervent and interesting character as Vincent. Fate often wields its hand in most unexpected ways and Harry and Vincent’s celebrated friendship certainly gave Harry greater depth and understanding about life, not to mention a very good friend.
business as planned. He was lucky enough to have a further two years learning from his grandfather before his death in 1879.
The famous Gladwell Brothers continued to run the family business throughout the 1880s until Arthur’s death aged fifty-two in 1889. Arthur was the glue that held his elder and younger brothers together and after his death, life at the firm wasn’t quite the same.
In 1891, due to Henry’s ailing health, he took a step back from the business – he was to die just two years later. At the same time, Henry and Alfred Thomas decided, just like their father had, that it was time for young Harry to have his own gallery and so Gladwell’s New Gallery was established at 73 Old Broad Street under the guidance of his father.
Harry’s drive and determination were evident, and he threw himself into the running of his own gallery. Brimming with ideas and wanting to prove himself, he embraced his new role with vigour. An advertisement found in an archive in New Zealand illustrates just how quickly he realised that he now could attract a worldwide clientele.
Alfred Thomas continued to run the brother’s business from the gallery at the old Gracechurch Street address, but upon his elder brother’s death in 1893, it seems that the Gracechurch Street property had to be sold (probably to pay for the death duties).
Henry William Snr. had left the freehold and leasehold of the gallery to provide for his remaining three children who were still dependent on him, and he realised that Harry was independently successful and would carry on the business.
Alfred Thomas found new premises at 164, Fenchurch Street where he set up with the same staff and manufactory as before, advertising in “The Year’s Art” in 1984 that he, “though the younger brother, is by many years the senior in the business, will continue
An advertisement found in an archive in New Zealand for Gladwell’s New Gallery at 73 Old Broad Street
the same at 164, Fenchurch Street, with the same staff and manufactory as heretofore”, noting in 1895 that four of his old employees had been “constantly in the employ of the firm for an aggregate of over one hundred and twenty years”. The following year he issued a disclaimer about his rivals trading under the Gladwell name, that he was “in no way associated with… other premises that have recently been opened, in the same name, in Fenchurch Street, and elsewhere”.
Alfred was to continue trading from Fenchurch Street right up until his death in 1906, and upon his death, Harry took over his side of the business as well.
Around the same time, Harry bought the new company of Henry Graves and with it, a vast quantity of stock, a wealth of experience and goodwill.
Harry’s first gallery was run out of premises at 1, Fenchurch Street before the expiration
of their lease forced him to search for a new location. He soon found a temporary space at Philpot Lane before eventually finding Gladwell’s new home on the corner of 70 & 71 Cheapside which soon became known as Gladwell’s Corner.
Harry knew that Cheapside would be a good location for the gallery and his move to there was an inspired choice. Just up the road from the Bank of England - the beating heart of the British Empire, and along from the Mansion House and the Royal Exchange, the area was the centre of the thriving metropolis that was London.
These were to be tremendous times for the business. With Harry’s experience gained through his various apprenticeships with his uncles and father and his spell at Goupils in Paris, he had all the makings of a superb art dealer. He had established and maintained connections throughout Europe with some of the finest dealers and artists of their day. The City of London was thriving, and his clientele came from far and wide to see his gallery and his exhibitions.
Harry was a natural businessman and with his deep passion for art, he found selling came easily. He was an honest, hard-working, and religious man who lived for those he loved.
The business quickly grew, and Harry opened branches on Regent Street and Southampton Row, to where he moved the Gladwell manufactory. This workshop was a phenomenal place employing around ten people as it supplied the frames for all the Gladwell Galleries around London. At its height, it was making between seven-hundred and nine-hundred frames a week just for the Gladwells’ shops. This is an extraordinary output even by today’s standards. Harry would eventually buy the freehold of a premises on Arthur Street in Bloomsbury to where he would relocate the manufactory and there it would stay for many years.
Like his father and grandfather before him, Harry was a family man. Born on the 5th of October 1857 in Camberwell, he grew up with his three siblings at the family home in Lewisham. Following his return from his apprenticeship in Paris, while he was working at the family gallery on Gracechurch Street, he was fortunate one day to meet the delightful Caroline Beatrice Arney. They had much in common, both being from large families –Caroline had seven siblings. Harry was an engaging character and quite the enigma, and they soon fell in love and were married on the 31st of March 1879 in Deptford St. John.
Harry and Caroline were to have five children. Their first son, Henry William was born in 1880, named after his father and grandfather, but sadly died aged two. The next year Beatrice Mary arrived and was named from her mother’s middle name and her grandmother’s Christian name. Three boys then followed –Ernest Arney (b.1885), Charles Victor (b.1891) and Algernon Leighton (b.1893).
Ernest and Algernon were fascinated by the art business, but Charles went his own way, meeting a young Canadian lady whom he married before emigrating with her back to Saskatchewan.
Ernest was the first to join his father in the business in 1901 at the age of sixteen, and Algernon followed some eight years later in 1909. This gave Harry very much joy.
Both sons followed the same path he had and spent spells at the different branches of the Gladwells enterprise learning the ropes. Ernest would eventually go on to start his own gallery in Knightsbridge and then in Chiswick with a loan from his father. Meanwhile Algernon would run the business on Regent Street for many years, before returning to the Cheapside headquarters when rent increases and redevelopment forced the closure of the Regent Street branch in 1923.
As the business prospered Harry shrewdly invested his hard-earned money in property and stocks to make sure he supported his family to the best he could.
In 1891, he bought an umbrella business from Mr. Ellis Staples in Croydon at 123 North End Road and with it the freehold of both 121 and 123. This too would become a very successful business. In fact my grandmother would find employment there making and repairing umbrellas which would eventually lead to my grandfather joining the art business.
Upon his son Algernon’s return to Cheapside, Harry took the opportunity to semi-retire, and Caroline and he bought a house on the coast down in Worthing. Algernon and his longtime, right-hand man Mr. Ward continued to look after the business in Cheapside.
Sadly, Harry was to only live a further four years and he passed away at the grand age of seventy on the 2nd of November 1927.
Harry left a large estate and bequeathed significant sums of money to all his close remaining family. Of the art gallery and other businesses that he had, he left all the stock and fittings at the Cheapside gallery along with the lease of the gallery to his two sons Ernest and Algernon who had joined him in the business. He also left the stock of mouldings, frames, engraved plates,
and blocks and all the stock at his works in Bloomsbury to the brothers too. He did however put Algernon in charge for just a few months before he dictated that Ernest should manage the business.
Harry left his umbrella business in Croydon and its freehold to Algernon with charges due on the freehold to his daughter Beatrice and to Ernest.
Harry was the most successful art dealer of his time. He lived a fascinating life and was the most engaging character. He left Gladwells in a very strong position and in the safe hands of Ernest and Algernon.
For a couple of years before Harry’s death, the family had been aware of the impending redevelopment of the Cheapside gallery’s site, and the curtain was drawn on an era in mid 1928, a somewhat fitting date only a year after Harry’s passing. Algernon was somewhat aggrieved that his father had left the running of the business to his elder brother, having managed the Cheapside branch for the previous few years. Therefore, when the redevelopment happened, the brothers went their separate ways. Ernest, being much more in favour of his West End addresses, took charge of the Knightsbridge and Chiswick branches, whilst Algernon stayed in the City and searched for new premises.
Ernest was happy to relocate back to his beloved gallery in Chiswick near to his family, and Algernon soon found a new gallery at the corner of Queen Victoria Street and Watling Street, and he set up a new ‘Gladwell’s Corner’ where the gallery remained until recently.
An advertisement for the umbrella shop that Harry Gladwell bought in 1891.
Algernon (Alge) Gladwell was born on the 12th of January 1893, the youngest of five children to Harry and Caroline. He was a precocious lad, and with older brothers and an older sister, he grew up fast.
Trained in the business by his father, the legendary art dealer Harry Gladwell, Alge (as he was known to many) began his active interest in the picture business when he joined his father’s incredible workshop in Southampton Row in 1909. Starting at
the bottom and learning the ropes from his father’s experienced team, the young Alge passed through various branches of the framing shop and gallery for several years.
It was not long before Harry put Alge in charge of the Regent Street branch, and he ran this gallery successfully for several years in what was one of the busiest shopping throughfares in the whole country.
It wasn’t until 1923, that steeply rising rents
necessitated the closing of both the Regent Street and Southampton Row branches and Alge, aged twenty-nine, then relocated to the existing headquarters at the Cheapside branch. Here with the help of Mr. Ward, a gentleman who served the firm of Gladwell for many years and who was esteemed and respected by all in the trade who knew him, and took over the business upon his father’s retirement.
The Cheapside business continued to prosper until in 1928 when the site was redeveloped, and the gallery was forced to move. The shop which had become a veritable landmark was demolished and for some time, it was feared that the name of Gladwell would be seen in the City of London no more. Alge was desperate to stay where he knew the gallery had prospered over the years and at the eleventh-hour he was able to secure the premises at 68, Queen Victoria Street.
Alge was thirty-four when his father died, a very young age to take on part of the enormous mantle of the Gladwell’s business, but he had been well prepared by Harry and embraced it with vigour. It was an enormous challenge to relocate a business from such an iconic location, a challenge which we know from our own recent experience, but Alge rose to it well.
Alge had an enterprise to run, with umbrella shop in Penge, a frame manufactory in Bow Lane, as well as the remaining Henry Graves stock from Harry’s purchase in 1906. As his father had done in the years before, Alge relied on his excellent managers to run each of his businesses.
My grandmother Florence (Peggy) managed his umbrella shop, and when in 1932 Mr. Ward retired from the gallery after his long
and distinguished service to the company, an opening came up for a new manager and my grandfather secured the job. It was an inspired choice and Herbert (Bert) rose to the fascinating challenge of the Gladwells gallery. This allowed Algernon to continue to split his time between his various operations.
It was at this time that Alge strove to protect the price of the stock of Henry Graves’ prints and engravings that he had inherited from his father. Alongside Mr. John S. Kitching, the president of the Fine Art Trade Guild, they decided to pulp over one-hundred thousand of the etchings to maintain their price. This was a superb example of taking the tough decisions to protect the business as a whole. Alge would eventually close down the Henry Graves business in 1935.
Alge had grown up as a confident precocious lad, and this made him quite the ladies’ man. He married Florence Hilda Lyons in 1920 when he was twenty-seven, and they had a son Anthony Leighton in 1921. The marriage only lasted two years and whilst Florence kept the Gladwell surname until she died in 1972, their son Anthony went by his mother’s maiden name of Lyons.
Later that year, on the 26th of October 1922, he married again to Dorothy Margaret Chinnon at St. Peter’s Church in Deptford. Alge and Dorothy then moved to Dulwich where they lived for a few years before divorcing in 1935. In 1938, he had a son, Derek Channon with a lady called Molly Harrington. Alge didn’t marry Molly until 1940 in Wandsworth, which is where they lived. They had a second son Geoffrey Leighton soon after.
With all the upheaval in his personal life, Alge took less and less of an active role in the gallery and relied evermore on his managers
to run his various enterprises and whilst he kept an ever-watchful eye, he mostly left them to their own devices and initiative.
Before and in the early years of the war, business was very poor for most people. Alge had always taken an interest in property and in 1940 a one-man estate agency business came up for sale because the owner, a Mr. Holmes, received his call up papers. Alge took it over and appointed Vera King to help him run the business which would become known as Gladwell & King.
Life during the war was extremely busy. The windows of the shop were shattered by bombs on no less than twenty-seven occasions. Because the Government feared that German incendiaries might cause another “Great Fire of London”, fire-watching was compulsory for all business owners who were not called up and as the galleries manager, my grandfather’s rota required him to spend two nights a week on the top floor of the block of shops - most of the time was passed playing billiards!
As Alge got older his eyesight and health deteriorated. In 1963, he decided to sell the gallery to my grandfather Bert. He knew the passion that Bert had for the gallery and that it was due to him that the gallery was still going strong. It was a terrific decision for the future of Gladwells, and the thoughtful Alge leant my grandfather a good portion of the money to buy the business. He was repaid within just two short years. Alge and my grandfather stayed good friends to the end, and he never regretted his decision to pass Gladwells on to its next worthwhile custodian. With this decision the era of the Gladwell dynasty drew to a close and the era of the Fullers began.
Alge had served on the court of the Artists’
General Benevolent fund as his father had for over forty-five years. He retired to Bexhill and lived with his lovely wife Florence until his death on the 26th of August 1977 aged eighty-four. He was survived by Florence and his two children Derek and Anthony.
SIR ALFRED MUNNINGS British, (1878-1959)
A Huntsman and Hounds Painted in 1906 Oil on Canvas 55 x 57 cms / 21½” x 22½”
SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL British, (1874-1965)
From the Venetian Causeway, Miami Beach Florida
Painted in 1946 Oil on Canvas 63 x 76 cms / 25½” x 30”
EDWARD SEAGO British, (1910-1974)
Yachts on the River Ant, Norfolk Painted circa 1950 Oil on Canvas 45 x 59 cms / 17½” x 23½”
Growing up in South Norwood, my Grandfather Herbert Fuller (Bert) spent the early parts of his childhood without seeing his father who, as a member of the Royal Navy and then the Merchant Navy, was away for vast stretches throughout the First World War. Bert was a keen Boy Scout and excelled at school. His passions included chess and fishing and he was installed with a firm work ethic from a very young age.
It was through his association with the Boy Scouts and through the local church as a youngster that Bert met his childhood sweetheart Florence Margaret Amor who was in the girl guides. Florence had been orphaned by the age of ten and was fostered by a lovely family called the Jefferies, who also lived in South Norwood.
After school, Bert started studying to be an actuary and was employed at Guy’s Hospital in their administration department. He was very talented at chess and won the Hospital Championship there. His love for Florence (Peggy) had never wavered, and in 1931 he proposed. Bert’s mother didn’t approve of the engagement, but this did not deter the strongwilled couple, and so it was that Bert and Peggy were married at 8.30am with just two witnesses at Enmore Road Congregational Church in South Norwood on the 25th March 1932.
The marriage was to have a further unintended, but for Gladwell & Company a very fortuitous consequence. In those days, it was expected that you asked your place of employment if you wanted to be married, and Bert had not done
this with Guy’s Hospital and was summarily dismissed from his job. The newlyweds were living above Peggy’s place of employment, Gladwell’s Umbrella Shop at 121-123 North End in Croydon, where she fixed and sold umbrellas working for Algernon Gladwell. Peggy suggested that Bert apply to Algernon for a job in the Gladwells art gallery in the City which he duly did. Thus started the next chapter in the history of this incredible company.
Bert joined Gladwell and Company in 1932 at the age of twenty-two, and very grateful for the opportunity, immediately threw himself into the business. Algernon had been running the gallery for five years since the death of Harry but he had other interests too, including the umbrella shop.
He recognised young Bert’s potential, quickly promoting him to the position of Gallery Manager and entrusting him to run the gallery and only providing a light touch of guidance to Bert.
The 1930s were a very difficult time for London. Slowly emerging from the effects of the Great Depression, the City and indeed the whole country were trying to rebuild and recover. The economy was growing slowly but hundreds of thousands of new houses were being built each year. This gave Bert the opportunity to grow the gallery business, to mould it to his vision and to take it to another level. He was incredibly hard working and honest, and he developed an immense passion for the art in which he was immersed. Between Bert
Paul’s Cathedral during the blitz
and Algernon, they started to make forays into Europe with regular business trips to identify up and coming artists and to broaden the gallery’s stock and reach. They regularly travelled to the Salons of Europe, meeting the best and most highly regarded artists with whom they started prosperous relationships. The gallery still deals with many of these artists’ work today.
Then in 1939, the Second World War began and life in London for business became virtually impossible. Sales plummeted and the country’s attention was largely elsewhere. Due to a bout of Peritonitis as a young man, Bert was ineligible for subscription and so he took on the task of being a Fire Warden in the City protecting the buildings from Hitler and the Luftwaffe’s incendiary devices and bombs. He was required to spend two nights a week on the top floor and roofs of the block of shops including 68, Queen Victoria Street, in case of attack.
Despite all of this, Bert managed to keep the gallery going, frequently collecting the paintings from the street after the windows had been blown out, and selling them to any interested passers-by on the twenty-seven occasions when the windows of the gallery had been blown out by bombs.
The end of the War came as a great relief and it wasn’t long before Gladwell &
Company became the first art dealer in the UK to be granted a currency export licence to enable Bert to once again buy paintings overseas. He resumed his trips to France and Algernon accompanied Bert on some of these early trips where he was able to effect introductions to some of his father Harry’s old contacts.
One of the first trips to Paris was to meet Monsieur and Madame Wintz. Raymond Wintz was to go on to become the President of the Paris Salon, but Bert had recognised his talent years before and their friendship was resumed. The Wintz family were charming people and the families kept in touch right up until Madame Wintz died in 2002.
Bert used his allowance to buy as many paintings as he was permitted, but on these forays he always earmarked others that he wanted. Through Algernon’s son Derek,
The front page of Bert and Anthony Fuller’s address book for their European tours
who was working at the Ritz in Paris, they worked out a system where Derek purchased them and posted them to the gallery in London.
Bert was to transform the fortunes of the art gallery and it became renowned as Gladwells’ Corner to both businessmen and international tourists alike. He established great relationships with incredible artists and dealers throughout Europe with frequent trips to Austria, Germany, France and Spain.
On one visit to Paris, Bert reacquainted himself with Louis Busiere, the mezzotinter of The Boy and The Rabbit who many years before had visited Harry Gladwell at home in London and signed many copies of the mezzotint which made his name. Sadly crippled with arthritis, it wasn’t possible for Busiere to visit London again to see the advances of Gladwell & Company.
On another trip to Spain, he was taken around the Museo Nacional del Prado by the President of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, the Spanish equivalent of our Royal Academy, and there Bert was introduced to many of the leading artists including Luis Muntane Muns, the leading Spanish figure painter.
Bert brought renowned French masters such as Georges Robin, Alexandre Jacob, Charles Perron, Edouard-Léon Cortès and Auguste Bouvard into the Gladwells fold. He introduced these artists to the British art market and subsequently around the world.
Gladwell & Company was such an institution in the City of London that Bert was warmly welcomed into its arms, becoming a Freeman of the City and attending many of the important banquets and events in the yearly calender. Fond memories of the paintings being taken out
of the front window of the gallery so that all of his children and then grandchildren could crowd in and watch the Lord Mayors procession each year still abide. He rose to the top of the Scout Lodge in Croydon and to the top of the Shern Hall Lodge in London.
Bert never lost the love he had for Scouting and was a district commissioner for many years before he eventually became a Queen’s Scout and was presented with the Silver Wolf by Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor. All of his spare time was devoted to the movement, and to helping young people grow up to be selfsufficient, to respect others, flourish and be responsible adults.
Bert was an incredible role model and a terrific family man. Bert and Peggy’s son Anthony was born in 1940 and their daughter Carole arrived soon after in 1942. The family had moved to Chipstead soon after the marriage, and their two children grew up there. Family holidays were taken down at Pevensey Bay, East Sussex where the family would decamp for the summer. Bert commuted from there to London whilst Peggy and the children
enjoyed the fields, rivers and beaches during their idyllic summers. Bert would come down at weekends and engage in a pastime that he loved – fishing.
Bert was a gentle man and a gentleman and he had the support of his wonderful wife every step of the way. He was incredibly successful because he had such a passion for his work. He loved acquiring the paintings which he felt his clients would like, and he was totally honest in his dealing and a wonderful communicator. He imparted his enthusiasm for a picture onto his clients with whom he often became firm friends.
Algernon retired aged seventy-two and having relied upon Bert to run the gallery for so many years, he decided to give him the opportunity to buy the business. After many years running the gallery, assisted for a long time by his wife Peggy, Bert mortgaged their house and everything they owned and managed to buy the business over a period of two and a half years. He bought all of Algernon’s shares for a princely sum of £15,050.
The same year, in 1968, Bert’s son Anthony joined him in the business, giving this
hardworking family man a wonderful boost and ensuring that the business that he had worked so hard on, now had a legacy and succession plan. Bert took great delight in working with his son and teaching him all about the company and the art world.
Father and son continued to take the gallery from strength to strength, cementing Gladwell & Company’s place as the most discreet and discerning Fine Art Gallery in London. It was the destination for any art collector wanting to build an honest and beautiful collection. Clients came from around the world, but it was the businesses and businessmen in the City of London who understandably provided the most custom. The gallery became a place of refuge for all the hard-working inhabitants of the City who wanted some culture and some class in their busy lives.
The gallery was a completely absorbing passion for Bert and he continued to work right up to his untimely death in 1980. For nearly fifty years at its helm, Herbert Arthur George Fuller’s conscientious work ethic, his love of art and his instinct in the business of art ensured the growth and strength of this wonderful old company. Gladwells will forever be indebted to his wisdom, his honesty and his honour.
Our next giant is my father. The giant that most of you will know. He has steered this grand old company for over forty years and has been in its employ for well over fifty years. He lives and breathes Gladwells and has dedicated his whole working life to ensuring that it has prospered and survived.
Growing up surrounded by fine paintings has a curious effect on you. Almost without knowing it, you become immersed in the wonderful world of art and the life and workings of the gallery. Seduced by the romance of travelling around the world and finding extremely special works of art, combined with the joy in meeting some unique and talented artists along the way, your very soul gets affected.
Anthony - Dad, was born at the beginning of the Second World War, and it was in the post war years, amidst some truly difficult and yet optimistic times, that my grandfather, Bert and my grandmother, Peggy nurtured Gladwell & Company into the wonderful gallery it remains today. Based on wonderful ideals of love for art, pride in the gallery, honest business relationships and friendships, the gallery went from strength to strength. There was a love and affection for the traditional ways of doing business.
As a small boy, Anthony had often visited his father’s Edwardian gallery, crossing over from the station at Cannon Street through one of the City of London’s many bomb sites. A path ran diagonally through the rosebay willowherb and rubble following the line of the old Roman Watling Street and the lost Walbrook River, almost to the door of Number 68. Under his feet lay the Roman Temple of Mithras which would only be rediscovered in September 1954 as work started on the site of what would become
the modernist Bucklesbury House for Legal and General Insurance.
It was in Dad’s formative years, that my grandfather would take the young Anthony (much like Dad did for me, my sister, and my brother) on buying trips to visit artists in France and across Europe. Coming back laden with paintings and bronzes on the plane via Charles de Gaulle and Gatwick, they would arrive home, overflowing with exuberance at the treasures they had secured. A family audience would ensue with Anthony and his sister Carole sitting in awe whilst Grandfather unwrapped his new acquisitions. I remember the same joy and excitement in waiting up for Dad to come back from a business trip to see what ‘gems’ he had returned with.
And so it came to be that on the 3rd of January 1968, Anthony started work in the gallery with his father at Gladwell and Company on Queen Victoria Street. Forsaking his yearning to teach outdoor pursuits in Colorado with his friends, he decided that discretion was the better part of valour, and at the age of twenty-seven he would join the family firm. Previously employed by Du Pont as European Buyer and NEM where he was introduced to my wonderful mum, Shirley and he had decided that he should choose a career, and what better one than the art that had infected his soul.
Anthony’s new career working with his father was at a pivotal moment for the capital. London in the Swinging Sixties was an exciting place to be and for many, the centre for fashion, taste and art. At this time Anthony was courting the aforementioned Shirley Smith who had travelled the World with BOAC and later that year on the 30th of March 1968, they were to marry.
It is always going to be interesting working in a family business, and Anthony at twentyseven was keen to inject some new ideas into his father’s business. Gladwell & Company by reputation was a traditional Fine Art Gallery, which his father had managed and run since joining in 1932.
For those of you who had the pleasure of visiting the old Gladwell’s Corner on Watling Street, you will recall the oasis that existed in the hustle and bustle of the Square Mile. Immaculately run by my grandfather, who was strongly supported by my grandmother, the wonderful old gallery was a haven of consistency in an ever-changing world.
Anthony’s love of art soon found him his own group of clients, and there are precious few people who have met him in the gallery over the years who don’t comment on the infectious joy that paintings give him. Many people’s love of art has been founded on a few minutes in Anthony’s company with some paintings.
The growth of Gladwell & Company in the City coincided, and was in no small part due to, the growth of business in the square mile throughout that time. But it was the passion
and love that my grandfather and Dad shared for their paintings that fostered many a lifelong friendship with their clients.
It was a massive shock when in 1980, my grandfather Bert was sadly to pass away. It was a huge challenge for Dad after only twelve short years working with his father, but those twelve years had seen Bert pass on a wealth of knowledge to Dad which ensured that he was in the best position to continue the business that he and his parents had nurtured since before the War. With his mother’s invaluable guidance and his own passion, Anthony went on to thrive throughout the 1980s, and he worked tirelessly to keep the old established gallery going. He felt the added pressure of being the custodian of such a strong and established business. A pressure that transferred into a phenomenal work ethic that would see him take business trips to Canada and beyond for simply a few hours before catching the next flight back, having seen and touched first-hand the wonderful works of art he wanted to purchase.
My grandmother Peggy continued to help Dad out for a day or two a week right throughout the 1980s and would make the train journey up from Goring-by-Sea in West Sussex to come and check that all was well. As I say, the gallery is in your blood.
Sadly in 1990, my grandmother passed away leaving Anthony to run the business on
his own. He would go onto steer the gallery though the recession of the early 1990s single-handedly. Fortunately, he had to wait just five short years before I joined him in the business in 1995 after a couple of ski seasons and University. My sister Cory joined us a few years later in 1998 following a successful and invaluable Masters degree at the Courtauld Institute of Art.
With Dad’s astute and careful guidance, and our youthful exuberance, the three of us embarked on a period of expansion and growth, initially with forays into exhibiting at fine art exhibitions in the UK and around the world, expanding our reach and meeting new clients and artists.
In 2004, a good friend and client of ours, Faith, came in one day and told us of a gallery in Mayfair that was up for sale, the founder having recently passed away. Faith thought that the two galleries would be a good fit, having a similar ethos. The resultant milestone purchase of the W.H.Patterson gallery at 19 Albermarle Street from Bill Patterson’s widow Patricia, introduced us to a whole new range of artists and clients, and opened some wonderful opportunities for us.
The ‘Gallerinas’ then started to grow, and we are now twelve strong. Dad has taken great pleasure in sharing his love of art and extensive knowledge with these wonderful people who share his passion, and they have now been a consistent part of his working life for the last eighteen years.
In 2012, some of the gallery team were lucky enough to view the river pageant for Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee on a ship moored in the Pool of London. The following September we all crowded into the windows of Gladwell & Company to watch the parade, starting from Mansion House, of the Olympic and Paralympic athletes on floats after the London Olympics.
In 2012, as fate would have it, the leases for both 68 Queen Victoria Street and
19 Albermarle Street were due to end at the same time. The decision was made to amalgamate the two businesses and move to 5 Beauchamp Place in Knightsbridge.
In December 2012, after a grand closing sale where people came from far and wide to secure a small memento from the historic gallery, the door was finally shut at 68 Queen Victoria Street. After over one hundred years, as Anthony and the team moved to Knightsbridge. One of the first exhibitions in the opening week was a Robert Chailloux retrospective exhibition, with items from his studio on display alongside his paintings, an exhibition Bert and Peggy would have instantly recognised and would have been so proud of, having discovered Robert Chailloux and his work just after the war on a business trip to Paris.
Many of the artists that my Grandfather and my Grandmother uncovered on these business trips have gone on to become the masters of today and remain the core of the artists with which the gallery is still associated.
The new gallery on Beauchamp Place has been our home now for the past ten years and it has rightfully carried on the tradition and ethos of the City and West End galleries. It feels much like the Gladwells of old – a quiet haven of culture set hidden amongst the hustle and bustle of this phenomenal city.
Dad’s time has seen some of the biggest ever changes in technology and lifestyle, and the most rapid advancement of human knowledge. He has overseen the introduction of the website and the galleries adaptation to the onset of the internet. Under his guidance we have taken the gallery and its collection to all corners of the globe, with the gallery now exhibiting in America and China on a regular basis. Throughout all of this time, he has prioritised the acquisition of the finest works of art, and he has made sure that the gallery represents the finest artists of their generation.
Dad often muses on what his father would make of where ‘little old’ Gladwells is today, with Claude Monet paintings on the wall, and with some acquisitions dwarfing a year’s takings of yesteryear. “What would my father think of this?” he often says proudly, emotionally and completely endearingly. I know my Grandfather would be glowing with pride at what Gladwells has achieved.
I know what pleasure dad takes from seeing his children in the business and in seeing the fine old gallery that he has nurtured now for over fifty years thriving and safe in the knowledge that it will continue in good hands into the future.
RAYMOND WINTZ French, (1884-1956)
Le Port de Belon (Morbihan), Bretagne
Oil on Canvas 73 x 100 cms / 28¾” x 39½”
ALEXANDRE LOUIS JACOB French, (1884-1956) Matin Doré Oil on Canvas 83 x 130 cms / 32½” x 51”
GEORGES CHARLES ROBIN French, (1903-2002)
Hiver à Chamesson (Haute Seine)
Oil on Canvas 81 x 91 cms / 32” x 36”
Dolly when he was young, and they had two daughters Maureen and Sylvia. They stayed together until the late 1950s when their marriage drifted apart, and he was soon to meet Patricia whom he started living with in 1959.
He always had a passion for art and in 1964, he used some of the money from one of his racehorses and joined forces with a friend of his, Shipman, to start Patterson & Shipman at 19 Albemarle Street in London’s Mayfair.
Patterson & Shipman was situated next to The Royal Institution and the famous Browns Hotel was just across the road. Both were magnets for sophisticated collectors and international travellers and set just behind Bond Street and a stone’s throw from St. James’, in the centre of London’s Art World.
Bill Patterson was born a cockney in the East End of London. A loveable, larger than life character, Bill started his career as a singer in a swing band and was an accomplished musician.
One of his passions was horse racing, and he had various shares in racehorses throughout his lifetime.
Bill’s early years were spent wheeling and dealing and he was a charming and charismatic man. He married his first wife
Patterson & Shipman had a couple of fledgling exhibitions together before Bill bought his friend Shipman out of the gallery and it became known as W.H.Patterson Fine Arts Ltd.
Bill couldn’t get a divorce from Dolly due to her Catholicism until 1970 and he finally married Patricia soon after. Patricia was fascinated with the art world, having initially trained as a lawyer, she then had her own interior design business. She worked closely with Bill in the gallery becoming a director.
Initially specialising in Dutch and European Masters, Bill was a bon viveur and a natural salesman, and when combined with
his love of art, he became a tremendously successful dealer. Towards the end of the 1980s W.H.Patterson started to support British and home-grown talent and became passionately involved with the New English Arts Club group of painters. Bill was to have many successful exhibitions of their work at Number 19. The gallery became known as the premier gallery for contemporary artists painting in traditional styles, and artists from around the world wished to be represented by them. It wasn’t long before W.H.Patterson were putting on as many as twelve shows a year of contemporary artists. Artists such as Donald Hamilton Fraser, James Hart Dyke, Paul S. Brown, Sheree Valentine Daines, Ken Howard and Peter Brown all were represented by W.H.Patterson.
An art agent from Antwerp introduced Willem Dolphyn to the gallery and Bill immediately saw the quality in his work. A sold out solo exhibition soon followed, and the gallery dealt with this great master of Belgian painting for over thirty years. A stable of incredibly talented Belgian artists soon followed and W.H.Patterson became the bedrock of quality for contemporary art.
Bill’s triumph in the world of art was to meet and support an emerging Lancastrian naïve artist who had come to painting late in life. After a career as a schoolteacher, Helen Bradley took up painting. Her art was based on the Edwardian England of her childhood. Charming scenes of life at work in the mill or holidaying at Blackpool in Wakes Week had picked up almost where Lowry left off. Bill was charmed and his first exhibition of her work in 1977 was simply called ‘London’. They became such close friends, it was Bill that Helen was taking to meet the Queen as she was to be awarded her CBE, sadly this wasn’t to be, as she died the day before.
A passion for Venice soon saw the innovation of the ‘Venice in Peril’ show which ran for over twenty years and continues sporadically today. Taking place in January each year, it started the London social season and was the place to be seen. The walls were packed with over three hundred paintings of Venice and visitors never failed to go home with some treasure under their arm.
Michael. They would still chat every day and the only time he ever stayed down in Esher with her was to recuperate after his triple heart bypass operation.
Bill mixed circles with politicians, artists, musicians, writers and the aristocracy. He lived and breathed the gallery and the art world and was only to be distracted from this by his two other passions for golf and for horse racing. He was often to be found in Brown’s Hotel across the road from the gallery which he treated much as his second home.
He lived for many years in the gallery which was equipped with its own basement flat, and whilst he and Patricia remained good friends, they were to drift apart romantically. Both strong characters, they clashed regularly and could not live together but certainly both loved one another throughout. They often went to the races together, a passion they both shared. Bill would normally stay in London during the week and then disappear to Brighton for the weekend to see his ‘friend’ Shirley. Patricia would stay at their home in Esher to which Bill never had a key and often met up with her ‘friend’
Bill and Patricia often sung together on an evening out and there were many musical evenings in W.H.Patterson. On their trips to Antwerp to see artists, where they would sit at the piano, Bill playing and singing and Patricia accompanying him into the small hours of the night. Patricia was also a larger-than-life character and would speak to anyone and would often just break out in song at a restaurant.
Bill died suddenly from a heart attack on the golf course in Jersey on the 17th August 2000 at the age of eighty-two. Working to the end, he was playing golf with his clients. Patricia carried on running the gallery for a few years alongside Bill’s long-term friend and fellow director John
White before entrusting it to the Fuller family and Gladwell & Company in 2004. The good and respected name of Patterson was combined with the Gladwell name when the gallery moved to its new location in 2013 after fifty highly successful years at Number 19.
HELEN BRADLEY British, (1900-1979)
The Wakes Comes to Lees Painted in 1973 Oil on Canvasboard 61 x 91 cms / 24” x 36”
PABLO PICASSO Spanish, (1881-1973)
Femme à la Fenêtre (Marie-Thérèse)
Painted in 1936 Oil on Canvas 55 x 45 cms / 21” x 18”
DONALD HAMILTON FRASER British, (1929-2009)
The Acrobat Oil on Canvas 106 x 102 cms / 30” x 40”
At a time when there were no motor vehicles in London and all transport was on horseback, in horse drawn carriages or by foot, Thomas Henry Gladwell started his gallery in 1834 at 21 Gracechurch Street. Captured in Thomas Dibden’s charming watercolour which now resides in the City of London Guildhall Art Gallery, it was an imposing and elaborate five story building in the Gothic revival style. Just down from the Bank of England, the gallery took up the bottom three floors, with the top two floors being given over to accommodation for Thomas’ family.
Three large imposing windows on the ground floor were crammed full of prints of all types and when the passer-by looked up the windows on the upper floors were also full of row upon row of fine pictures.
A recessed doorway on the left of the windows led you up two steps through some heavy velvet curtains to the plush interior of the gallery where pictures were hung floor to ceiling in the manner of the annual Royal Academy Exhibition. Laid out over three floors of galleries, there were a wealth of treasures inside.
As the gallery progressed through the ages
first as T.H. Gladwell – Fine Art Gallery, then as Gladwell Brothers – Cittie of London Fyne Artte Galleries, and then as The City of London Fine Art Gallery – Messr’s Gladwell Brothers, many fine preview evenings and exhibitions were held there. The Gladwell Brothers and their father before them had a fine sense of the theatrical and what was required to publicise their exhibitions.
Their invitations, etched often by the leading etchers of the day with whom they worked, such as H. Gillard Glindoni and Stanley Berkley, created a sense of fun and were suggestive of the lifestyle and glamour in which they wanted you to buy. Elegant figures arriving in sedan chairs or in horse drawn carriages, dressed in their finery, being welcomed by a bewigged doorman in a tricorne hat, created an impression that the Gladwell Brothers wanted to enhance.
A particular favourite of mine is of a bowler hatted rider being thrown from his horse through the windows of their exhibition of sporting subjects. Quite outrageous for the time, it must have created quite the stir when it landed on their customers’ doormats. Who wouldn’t want to attend that exhibition? Masters of publicity they certainly were!
Three invitations to exhibitions at Gladwell BrothersYe Cittie of London Fyne Artte Galleries - late 1800s
Adverts, picture labels and business cards from Gracechurch Street
Harry Gladwell had started his own branch of the firm at 1, Fenchurch Street, as was the normal format with each of the next generation after they had served their apprenticeships in the business. Harry soon found a beautiful new premises which was ideal for a gallery and in 1892, he moved the business to the corner of Queen Street and Cheapside, at what would soon become known as ‘Gladwell’s Corner’.
Cheapside was one of the busiest throughfares in London and had remained so for generations, and as the City became wealthier and continued to grow, as did Harry’s clientele. The gallery was just up the road from the Bank of England and the Royal Exchange and the passing trade was immense.
The gallery specialised in prints, engravings and fine works of art, and Harry was a master at promotion and a natural salesman. The gallery stocked around fiftythousand different prints all contained in beautiful folios and arranged neatly in drawers or hung from floor to ceiling on the gallery’s three levels. Each new addition
would gather much attention in the wrap around corner windows drawing in the clients to enquire about them. Clients would spend many hours browsing through the many pictures and being assisted by a team of gallery assistants brilliantly led by Mr. Ward, Harry’s gallery manager. Very rarely did anyone leave empty-handed.
Harry kept his manufactory at Southampton Row very busy and with his other branches he was selling vast quantities of prints and engravings. Cheapside was the headquarters of the business ever since his uncle, the last of the three Gladwell brothers, had passed away and the Gracechurch Street address had to be closed. It remained so throughout Harry’s life and continued going for five years after he retired in 1923 when it was run by Algernon and Ernest, Harry’s sons, and Mr. Ward.
Gladwell’s Corner on Cheapside was finally closed in 1928 when the building was redeveloped heralding the end of a glorious era for the company led by the brilliant Harry Gladwell.
“At the eleventh hour Mr. Gladwell was able to secure the premises in Queen Victoria Street, where the business is still being conducted under the style of Gladwell & Co., Ltd. Here is an excellent corner, within a hundred yards of the site of the Cheapside shop and here as of yore the windows are a continuous source of attraction to the conglomeration of humanity which daily infest this City of ours in search of the wherewithal to obtain the sustenance essential for the body if not for the soul, from the top-hatted magnate to the messenger boy eating his lunch from a scruffy paper bag.”
‘Gladwell’s Corner’
68 Queen Victoria Street (1928-2012)
I fondly remember as a young boy coming up to the City of London to visit my father and Grandfather in the gallery. The magnificent, curved glass windows crammed with paintings. The elegant red velvet curtains and wooden panelling. The curtains that my grandmother had lovingly handmade, their hems filled and sewn up with old coins and lead weights.
As you stepped across the historic mosaic doorstep brought down from the Cheapside gallery and reinstalled here –‘Gladwell’s Corner’, you were stepping into a wonderland.
Paintings hung floor to ceiling and on every available space on the back of doors and up and down the stairs. A compact and charming space, the gallery was a haven
for all who visited. A place of calm amongst the hubbub of the surrounding City.
I remember being in awe of the beautiful paintings. The swinging gate at the top of the stairs with the small enamel label ‘PRIVATE’ attached in the centre, probably exactly at my eye level at the time. A gate to a special world downstairs full of incredible works of art. The curious staircase with two landings, so brilliantly designed; a staircase to a private haven only a few knew. My grandfather had always taken great stead in a book he had read about a famous and successful art dealer who had three rooms in his gallery each one reserved for ever more favoured clients –an inner sanctum for the very lucky.
That’s what it felt like here at Gladwells.
I remember the smell of the place, a mixture of the smell of newly varnished oil paintings and years of the smoke from Woodbines which my grandfather favoured. I remember the old Bakelite light switches. The downstairs gallery was a wonder; two old coal holes served as the office and the packing room, crammed and packed with invaluable records and ledgers of sales passed, clients and artists, photos and reference books. Catalogues of auctions past and present; potential treasures to add to the collection.
There were racks full of neatly arranged canvases and framed paintings, hidden cupboards full of yet more treasure. Folios packed full of watercolours and etchings, each one a beauty to behold.
It was the smallest gallery in the world and yet it seemed like the largest. Every inch of space was used and filled to the brim with years and years of history and tradition.
Pictures were arranged in neat stacks against the walls, often five or six deep and the
the gallery’s esteemed clientele would like nothing better than coming and unearthing a hidden treasure that spoke to them.
All this left a searing impression on me, because, never pressured, I found myself drawn to the old gallery after my spell at St. Andrew’s University. I thought “I’ll go and help dad for a bit”. That was some thirty years ago.
We continued to improve the gallery, but the spirit never changed. Better track lighting, a dimmer switch and a curtained display area became a staple of the downstairs gallery. A place where a particular choice work of art could be isolated from the crowded walls and enjoyed in isolation. The dimmer switch allowing the viewer to enjoy the painting under different levels of light as it would be in their homes at different times of the day or year.
Air conditioning was installed to try and alleviate the intense temperatures in the summer, which were an unavoidable by-
product of the huge south facing windows. A greenhouse in all but name, even the beautiful old blind that could be pulled down couldn’t do enough to hold back the sun.
The shopfront itself, listed and unique, remains as it was to this day, the large Gladwell & Company Bakelite name still displayed above the tops of the windows.
The gallery moved here in 1928 after many years on Cheapside and Gracechurch Street and the windows were slightly redesigned in the 1960s. Many a businessman had stopped in a taxi at the traffic lights as they were passing and come back in to see a painting they liked.
We were situated across the road form another old City institution, Sweetings the fish restaurant, and many a client came from a long lunch there or indeed was taken to a long lunch there. Fine fish and sawdust on the floors, we were both bastions of the revolution.
We left Queen Victoria Street in 2012, the year of Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee and London Olympics.
We had enjoyed the river pageant, despite the rain, from a tall ship at Tower Bridge. Our experience of the Jubilee from the Pool of London was superb, and we still fondly remember our day on Old Father Thames.
We experienced the celebrations for the Monarch and saw London come alive an Olympic parade of athletes, as soon many Lord Mayors Shows had also done, passed right by the gallery door.
The City basked in jubilation and celebration as our own anniversary due near. A final hurrah and the second sale of the century saw us off.
For eighty-three years, 68 Queen Victoria Street, on the corner of the old Roman Watling Street, was our home. It served us proud. Our windows took the brunt of the Second World War, being blown out on twenty-seven occasions but still the gallery stood strong. It was a wrench to leave this beautiful old gallery after such a long and historic time in the company’s history, but it will forever hold a place in our hearts.
(1964-2013)
The first time that I walked into Number 19, I was struck by its grandeur. The beautiful fanlight above the door, its location in the heart of London’s Mayfair, and the grill and buzzer on the door protecting the treasures inside.
The walls were decorated with a burgundycoloured hessian, excellent at displaying the paintings and very resilient to the hundreds of thousands of pin holes hammered in them over the years.
But most of all, I was struck by the space. Having spent twelve years in the City, W.H.Patterson seemed huge by comparison. Yet despite this it had a warm and welcoming atmosphere.
Outside a poster box advertised the latest exhibition and the windows displayed a
selection of the beautiful paintings inside. The lettering on the windows further promoting the exhibition.
Two big Regency ‘chatterbox’ circular sofas sat in the centre of each of the galleries, so often occupied by contented visitors enjoying the paintings. A selection of Victorian console tables and chairs added to the elegant design of the gallery.
Through a small oval topped door at the back was Bill’s office, the nerve centre from which he planned all of his exhibitions and welcomed his loyal clients and friends for a chat and a whisky. Stacks of reference books adorned the bookcases on the walls and his favourite paintings hung around the room.
Favoured clients were welcomed downstairs
where Bill had a lounge for entertaining and another large office for his excellent team.
A small kitchen led through to a courtyard where lunch was often taken in the fresh air. A huge well racked out storeroom held Bill’s extensive collection of fine Dutch and Contemporary paintings, and another storeroom held a large packing room.
On the first Tuesday of every month, the gallery doors were thrown open to host the private view of the next exciting exhibition, and more often than not these were sell-out shows, with many hundreds of visitors coming to see each show. Champagne flowed freely and many a deal was concluded. Musicians often accompanied the festivities and the atmosphere was convivial and enticing.
Our home for the last ten years has seen a period of growth and success for the business. Marie-Claire first stumbled across the prospective premises on her walk to work in the old Mayfair gallery and our first viewing confirmed our suspicions that with the little work the place could become as warm and welcoming a gallery as our previous homes had been.
Elegantly decorated and with two levels on the ground floor and several different rooms, with a further gallery and storeroom in the basement, the gallery has proved to be as tremendous success.
Situated on the famous Beauchamp Place in the heart of Knightsbridge, the street has a lovely feel full of small independent businesses and some beautiful restaurants.
Client exhibition previews and lively dinner parties regularly bring the gallery to life in the evening, but during the day it is a haven of quiet tranquillity. You can be assured of a warm welcome, a friendly smile, and a cup of tea or something stronger. Do come and visit us if you haven’t already!
Over recent years we have spread our wings, and in addition to our London base at 5 Beauchamp Place, we have stunning new gallery in Oakham at 23b Mill Street. Situated in this beautiful old market town in the very heart of Rutland, England’s smallest county, our country outpost has become a must visit destination for many.
You are greeted by the enticing pictures and bronzes in the small main display window as you walk along Mill Street and as you step up the two steps and through into the gallery you are greeted by two charming rooms through which
you peruse until you reach the main salon. An impressive large central skylight casts natural light across the beautifully laid out gallery. The walls adorned with a mix of fine contemporary artists’ work and those masterpieces for which the gallery is renowned.
Being centrally located within the country and away from the hustle and bustle of London, Gladwells Rutland provides a convenient and appealing alternative to our London gallery. It is definitely worth taking the time to come and visit us there.
The Welcome Storm Oil on Canvas 122 x 244 cms / 48” x 96”
ALFRED DE BREANSKI SNR. British, (1852-1928)
The Banks of the River Doon Oil on Canvas 78 x 106 cms / 30¾” x 41¾”
DEREK G.M. GARDNER British, (1914-2007)
The Glorious First of June Oil on Canvas 76 x 127 cms / 30” x 50”
While the Gladwell Brothers achieved renown as leading merchants of paintings and prints in the late nineteenth-century, the phenomenal success of their framing and gilding enterprises has often gone overlooked. From workshops on Southampton Row and Borough High Street, more than ten employees worked to supply their galleries with between sevenhundred and nine-hundred frames a week. Through a combination of expertise and innovation, the brothers left an indelible mark on the Victorian art world, not only furnishing the homes of thousands of clients but also helping artists find a source of high-quality and affordable frames.
In their 1887 publication, A Few Words on Art: Which are also Words of Advice and Warning, the Gladwell Brothers described the subject of gilding, revealing the premium they placed on experienced employees: “Gilding is a Fine Art, or at least it may be made so by the beauty of its execution, but in these days of excessive competition it is, as an art, but little practised, and it is difficult to find Gilding executed in the best manner possible. Materials of the same quality and in the same quantity will, in the hands of different workmen, produce results varying very much in their value – a truism that will be readily admitted by all artists”. Their message was simple and direct: in an industry predicated on the use of similar materials, it was the skill of Gladwell & Company’s workers that set the company apart. Consequently, their advertisements
always sought to emphasise the impressive tenures of their craftsmen, as we can see in the following: “Gilding is one of the departments of their business to which Messrs. Gladwell Brothers have for many years devoted a considerable amount of personal attention, and in which they are assisted by skilled workmen, who have been in the employment of their firm for periods varying from twenty to fifty years”.
As in their gilding department, so in their framing department, Gladwell brothers were always at pains to emphasise the unrivalled experience of their workforce. In 1895 Alfred Gladwell noted that his four leading framers had been “constantly in the employ of the firm for an aggregate of over one hundred and twenty years”. It is clear, reading the words of the two brothers, that they attributed a large measure of their success to the unparalleled experience, and evident loyalty, of their team.
In producing the great number of frames needed to satisfy their market, the Gladwell brothers developed an extensive and highly skilled framing business. In producing nearly one-thousand paintings a week, they employed as many as ten hands at their Southampton Row workshop alone. Yet the owners were clearly not content to rest on their laurels. In 1887, the Gladwell Brothers announced a significant new development in framing: “Messrs. Gladwell Brothers, as practical men, have a greater experience in this department than the majority of their
competitors in the trade. Their business has been established for more than halfa-century, and their principle employees have been in the service of their firm for periods varying from twenty to fifty years. Their manufactory is one of the best appointed in the trade. New and specially designed machinery has been erected at
considerable cost, and the introduction of a new and beautiful plastic material for their ornamented work enables them to give designs and effect at a reasonable cost, that could only otherwise be obtained at a considerable expense of both time and money.
By means of this material they are enabled to use richness of design, combining that high relief and undercutting so much admired by the connoisseur in those costly, and therefore almost out of date, frames carved by hand, thus giving an individuality to each frame that cannot be obtained by any other method, and while preserving the special characteristics of carving by hand, to reduce the cost most materially.”
will, no doubt, readily appreciate an effort that is now being made to comply with their many requirements, amongst which may be mentioned the faithful execution of Original Designs, Style, High Quality, Promptness and Economy. Messrs. Gladwell Brothers having recently acquired a very much more extensive Manufactory, at 156 High Street Borough, where they have erected specially designed Machinery, are now enabled to offer their
From the earliest advertising produced by the gallery under the ownership of first Thomas H. Gladwell from 1835 to 1879, and then his two sons from 1879 to 1891, constant emphasis was put on helping to provide artists with affordable, high-quality framing. In an 1840 billhead, Thomas Gladwell was already offering liberal discounts to artists, an approach continued by his two sons. In an 1887 advertisement, the Brothers clearly noted both the rising costs of frames for artists before restating their ability to continue to offer reasonable prices: “Hitherto most artists have experienced considerable difficulty in having their special designs for frames carried out with sufficient promptitude and at moderate cost, and
Artist Friends a compliance with all of these conditions”.
It is thus easy to attribute their aforementioned “introduction of the new and beautiful plastic material…” at least in part to this desire to maintain visual quality while at the same time expanding the market for affordable frames.
While the extensive operations and expertise of Gladwell Brothers was often turned to satisfying popular demand for their print series, their skills were also sought by those at the very top of art academia. In the archives of the National Gallery, there still survives a letter from 1st November 1886, in which the
director of the institution grants permission for the Gladwell Brothers to measure a portrait so as to provide it a new frame. There is perhaps no better indication of the esteem in which the Gladwell Brothers framing abilities were held than an interaction with the National Gallery.
Alongside the Gladwell Brothers careful balancing of tradition and innovation in their framing and gilding business, seeking employees with decades of experience while at the same time championing the use of modern materials, they also held particularly forward-looking views on the subject of painting restoration. Despite their crucial legacy of scholarship and connoisseurship, the Art World still grapples with the oftendamaging approaches to restoration taken by the Victorians. From repainting and over varnishing to more egregious acts of cropping, multiple paintings still bear the scars of overintrusive practices.
Yet, in a startlingly modern approach for 1887, we see the Gladwell Brothers seek to defend the material integrity of paintings in their publication A Few Words on Art When asked by a client whether to repaint an area of a picture (an indication of common practices) their response was clear and emphatic: “Our answer, of course, was decidedly not. The skill of the artist is best shown by doing as little as may be necessary to render the picture presentable; his duty is to preserve, and not to repaint. Repaint a Sir Joshua! Or a Gainsborough!!”. While this sentiment seems eminently sensible to today’s reader, in its Late Victorian context it represented a challenge to the conventional practices that modern art restorers are still working to undo.
Between their art galleries, framing, and gilding businesses, the nineteenth-century Gladwell Brothers were clearly at the centre of an important network at the heart of London’s art world. Emphasis should be placed on both the role the Gladwell Brothers played in the democratisation of visual culture, through their enormously popular print series, and their widening of a network through which artists and printmakers could access well-made and affordable framing.
In this fast-paced, ever-changing world, we must take ourselves and our beautiful paintings out and about around the world to meet our lovely clients, both new and old. Spectacular annual exhibitions allow us to share our passion and to present our gallery to a wider discerning audience.
The onset of the pandemic halted our worldwide travels temporarily, however we adapted and staged our annual Chelsea Flower Show exhibition in our garden. Covered by The Times, over four-hundred people came to see the show, which has now become a regular bi-annual event at Molecey Mill in Lincolnshire. Gallery in the Garden now starts and ends the Gladwell & Patterson season and feels like a new tradition already. For those of you who have visited Molecey you will know there is a magic there.
Here are some of the exhibitions that we have enjoyed around the world.
Our knowledge and experience are in great demand and we are often asked to give lectures and booth talks at exhibitions around the world.
It is always such a pleasure to do these and share our enthusiasm and passion with interested audiences.
Our business has always had the goal of dealing with the finest artists of their generation. We value quality and integrity very highly, and we understand the passion and creativity that comes hand-in-hand with being so talented.
From the times of John Boydell, Henry Graves and throughout the Gladwell Dynasty we have represented and raised awareness of the genius of some incredible artists. Amongst the best of these were - John Constable, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Sir Thomas Lawrence, Thomas Gainsborough, Henry Liverseege, Sir Edwin Henry Landseer, Joseph Mallord William Turner, Sir David Wilkie, Thomas Faed, William Powell Frith, Sir Francis Grant, and Sir John Everett Millais.
The latter Gladwells’ also represented many of the finest Victorian and Edwardian artists such as Alfred de Breanski, Richard Dadd, Sir William Russell Flint, Myles Birket Foster, and Dorothea Sharp.
My grandfather and my father continued with this fine tradition and ethos, regularly travelling to the Salons of France and across Europe and the United Kingdom to discover and establish relationships with the best artists of their time. We are now regarded as the world’s leading experts on quite a number of the artists of the twentieth-century that we dealt with; Georges Robin, Alexandre Jacob, Edouard Cortes, Auguste Bouvard, Raymond Wintz, Charles Perron, Derek Gardner, George Shaw and David Shepherd.
We thought it would be enjoyable to highlight a few of these here in the following pages.
Bill Patterson had an aligned ethos and had found magnificent artists from across Europe whom he represented. Willem and Walter Dolphyn, Pieter Wagemans, and Ronny Moortgat from Belgium. Paul S. Brown, who was originally from America but had migrated to Florence in Italy, and of course, Helen Bradley, Donald Hamilton Fraser and Kenneth Webb.
We continue to represent outstanding contemporary artists and are proud to name all of these talented individuals, and those that have gone before, part of our wider Gladwells family.
Today our family of artists includes such talents as Peter van Breda, Stewart Lees, Martin Taylor, Peter Symonds, Simon Gudgeon, Edward Waites, Clarissa James, Nick Bibby, Aris Raissis, James Doran Webb and Jonathan Walker.
“The
Oil on Canvas, 29” x 24”
Gladwell & Company’s history with Georges Charles Robin began when Herbert Fuller first discovered the artist in the 1948 Paris Salon. In his forties, Robin had already established himself as one of the leading French artists of his day, represented by Galerie Haussmann and Galerie Heinault. Yet it was Bert’s decision to approach the artist directly in his studio that created a direct relationship between gallery and artist. Over the course of more than fifty years Gladwells would be instrumental in introducing Robin’s work to an international audience. Our gallery would acquire works directly from the artist until he became blind in 1981 and would continue to support him until his death at the age of one hundred by buying his earlier paintings. The relationship between Robin and Gladwell & Patterson continues to go from strength to strength to this day as we continue to champion the quality of his work. Already considered the experts on Robin, our upcoming Catalogue Raisonné will greatly aid in the academic study of his ever-growing importance.
“
Chailloux was truly one of the nicest people I have had the great pleasure of knowing. Every visit to his studio was a treasured encounter. As a family he has touched all three generations of the Fullers and we all consider ourselves very fortunate to have known him and been custodians of his work over such a long period of time. I will never forget his hidden stash of whisky pulled up from a hole in the lawn which we shared on my visits ”.
Anthony Fuller
Chailloux’s rigor and attention to detail, the cornerstone of his painting, shone through in each of our meetings with the artist over a forty year period. His studio was a veritable Aladdin’s cave of treasures, filled with everything from his extensive collection of French Pottery to the rustic fruits and flowers he would daily select from the local market, all of which would appear in his meticulous paintings. To this day a painting of one of the dolls his wife made still hangs on Anthony’s granddaughters wall, a gift from the artist which continues to bring joy every time we see it.
Our relationship with Alexandre Louis Jacob begun at the same 1948 Paris Salon, perhaps the most important exhibition in our history, where Herbert Fuller met Georges Charles Robin. Already in his seventies and a senior figure in French art, it was our pleasure to deal directly with Jacob and introduce him to an international audience.
“ He was a very small man in stature. He had a very calm and collected life and everything was organised and I think you can see that in his paintings as well…. He gives me a restful feel every time I look at any of his pictures.
I feel the secret of Jacob’s success was simply finding a subject matter and depicting it in delicate tones and hues, which have continued to exert universal appeal ever since. Whether it is the old man punting across the water, or the cart horses pulling the log cart, his refined colouring always focuses one’s eye on the central subject.”
Anthony FullerGladwells have been championing Charles Perron’s charming paintings since the early 1930 when we first encountered his work on a visit to the Salon des Artistes Francais for their Summer Exhibition in Paris. Herbert Fuller was so enchanted with the captivating depictions of rural French life, be they the intimate cottage scenes, the delicate still-lifes or the beguiling nudes, that he travelled to meet Charles at his studio in Nantes. The two gentlemen hit it off and there began a rewarding lifelong friendship which has extended between the families through the generations.
“In 1987 I met Perron’s daughter at an auction in Brittany; Madame Perron took me back to her father’s studio where his palette lay on the floor beside the easel, exactly where he put it on the day he died nearly thirty years earlier. This meeting renewed Gladwells relationship with the Perron family. I learnt that when the war began, the artist buried all of his paintings in his garden and moved to Brittany, where his subject matter expanded with the change of scenery. On the cessation of war Perron returned to his studio, dug up his pictures and resumed his career.”
Anthony Fuller
“Winter
Gladwell & Patterson’s history with this distinguished artist began before the Second World War. Herbert Fuller discovered the landscapes of Raymond Wintz at the Paris Salon of 1937 where he bought several canvases at the time and a friendship was struck up between the two men.
“The Green Door, Brittany“ Oil on Canvas, 21” x 25”
Raymond Wintz and his family were the first people that Bert visited after the war when Gladwells was granted the first currency export licence to enable Bert to travel to Europe to buy paintings again. The friendship was rekindled and many happy years of trading followed. During the pinnacle of the artist’s career, in 1953 he was recognized for his brilliant paintings and was elected as President of the Jury of the Paris Salon. Bert was responsible for promoting and selling Raymond’s work in the United Kingdom. We have continued to share the legacy of this great artist, and our records show the unfaltering demand for Wintz’ exquisite Brittany landscapes and window scenes.
Celebrated for his captivating views of the Venetian canals, Bouvard possessed an undeniable talent for utilising light and atmospheric effects to portray the grandeur of the legendary city. Whilst Bouvard’s subject matter is similar to Canaletto and Guardi, he differs from these great artists by his use of a free impressionist technique, with the introduction of vivid colour and warmth. Under a golden sun and turquoise-blue sky, Bouvard’s Venice glistens with unmistakable majesty as he deftly documents its architectural gems and romantic atmosphere.
“The Boatyard, Venice“ Oil on Canvas, 20” x 26”
Gladwell & Company held the first one man exhibition of Bouvard’s work in Britain in 1928 at 68 Queen Victoria Street in the City, from which the late Queen Mary purchased two examples of his work. Herbert Fuller continued to acquire paintings from this fine artist up until Bouvard died in 1956, and the two subsequent generations of the Fuller family have continued to acquire his paintings for our stock ever since.
Herbert Fuller was introduced to Edouard Cortès by their mutual friend Alexandre Louis Jacob on a visit to Paris in 1952. Bert had seen and appreciated the luminescent Parisian cityscapes of this fine artist and on the first visit to his studio he bought six beautiful canvases from him. They sold almost instantly on Bert’s return to London and Bert was to return many times to visit Cortès in his studio, the pair becoming firm friends. Bert continued to represent Cortès’ exquisite Parisiene street scenes in London right up until the artist’s death in 1969, Gladwell & Patterson continue to utilise an intimiate knowledge of the artist’s technique and style to buy the very best examples. Cortès’ canvases were so appealing that they found a worldwide demand and his work remains greatly sought after today.
Anthony Fuller first met David Shepherd in the early 1980s when David was already established as one of the finest wildlife artists of his generation. Anthony recognised the passion and talent for which David was renowned and we have dealt with his work ever since, championing both his conservation work and the brilliance of his talent. We continue to work closely with The David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation and have held several posthumous one man exhibitions of his work which have been tremendously successful. His work is as collected today as it has ever been and is respected by all for both his paintings and what he achieved with his conservation goals.
“La Rue de Rivoli, at the Tuilleries Gardens” Oil on Panel, 13” x 18”
“Leopards at the Watering Hole” Oil on Canvas, 18” x 28”
And what now of the future? Where do we go from here?
The foundations have been laid and they are very strong.
We have elegant galleries brim full of beautiful paintings and sculpture. We have artists of incredible, un-imaginable talent.
We have the most magnificent, hard-working, and wonderful team, led by our loyal and inspirational directors – Glenn, Cory, Marie-Claire, Ella and Emily. By our side for twenty years, Graham and with continuing love and care from Mum and Dad. We are a family. Everyone who is lucky enough to get up every morning and come to the gallery and call it ‘work’, surrounded by beautiful things and interacting with you all, our friends, will attest that it isn’t really work. The old adage of find something you love to do and you never really work again could not be more true of Gladwells.
We remain acutely aware of the need to be adaptable and nimble. The world changes so fast - tastes, fashions, designs – and yet if we remain true to our beliefs in the importance of quality and talent, beliefs that have been reinforced time and time again through many generations, then we should be assured of a long and bright future.
Anthony joined Gladwell & Company fifty years ago in the City of London, working alongside his father Bert. Art is a, if not the, lifelong fascination of Anthony’s, having been immersed in, and surrounded by fine paintings since earliest childhood.
Anthony remains extremely passionate about the process of advising clients as they build their collections, and introducing them to the work of the gallery’s artists. Anthony’s focus on quality is sharper now than ever, and he now dedicates his time to travelling the world in search of the very finest artworks, evaluating condition and value first-hand. Anthony’s long experience in the field is unmatched.
Glenn joined the family business in the early 1990s, and over a thirty-year period of intense change has played a defining role in repositioning this historic business for the twenty-first century. By balancing tradition with innovation, Gladwell & Patterson is now perfectly placed for the opportunities of the future. Educated at Whitgift School and St. Andrew’s University, Glenn’s keenest passions beyond the art world are skiing and rugby.
Cory graduated from King’s College with First Class Honours, before continuing her postgraduate studies at the Courtauld Institute of Art where she specialized in French nineteenth century painting.
Cory has cultivated her expertise and love of paintings, sculpture, furniture and photography over the last thirty years and has inherited her father’s impeccable taste and eye for quality.
Marie-Claire joined Gladwell & Patterson in 2006, having read French & History of Art at Edinburgh University and worked across various industries in London. As Director of Acquisitions, her expertise lies in her sixteen years of experience in the art world working on international sales and curation of important private collections to establishing a global network of contacts, auction house specialists and dealers.
Graham joined Gladwell & Patterson in 2010. Graham is instrumental in the operational running of the gallery and our external events, having organised over fifty of our international fairs. Each year he brings his creative flair to our exceptional exhibits at the Chelsea Flower Show and more recently to our pop-up Garden in the Gallery exhibitions.
Ella joined the gallery in 2013 from the Impressionist & Modern Art Department at Christie’s. She studied History of Art at the University of Warwick followed by a Masters’ Degree at the Courtauld Institute of Art. Ella brings her passion for art to the forefront of her role as our Creative Director. Ella has produced many exhibition catalogues for the gallery and is currently writing the Catalogue Raisonnés of Paintings by Georges Robin and by Alexandre Jacob.
As our Director of Sales, Emily works closely with clients to find the art they love and enjoy, embracing the excitement and pleasure of building an art collection today. Emily joined Gladwell & Patterson in 2016 and takes an active role in our representation at global art fairs and values the opportunity to meet clients within the UK as well as America and Asia. Her enthusiasm knows no bounds when dealing with the finest works of art that Gladwell & Patterson have to offer.
Our close-knit family team is completed by our rising stars without whom we wouldn’t be the force we are today. Brimming with enthusiasm and joy, these phenomenally talented individuals are integral to our Gladwells’ family.
And our next generation are already beginning to show the signs of great things to come…
We never know which of the next generation of Fuller grandchildren may rise to the challenge of a Gladwells, but there are some encouraging signs.
In researching and writing this book, the obvious question that arises is what it takes for a business to last for 275 years, and it is very hard to say. The reason it is hard to say, I think, is that the skills needed to be an eighteenth century print-seller and publisher and those needed to be an international fine art dealer today are not the same skills. It really is quite difficult to last 275 years. There are hundreds of galleries that have been founded during the time that Gladwells was growing for the first 250 years. Most of them are not here anymore. The answer I think, is that the company has had good enough people to change in a way that meant it could survive in a vastly changing world while still making a valuable contribution to that world. It is the pioneering and innovating spirit that the leaders have shown and their ability to move with the times whilst keeping their core values.
Great forces have joined through merger and acquisition, and this has kept us relevant and in touch, and has led us to the position of strength we now find ourselves in. Our brilliant forebears have realised that in unity comes great strength, and that the knowledge that is acquired only through experience is the most valuable. It provides a wise head with clear thought to take on any challenge, and a resilience when times are tough.
First founded in the City of London in 1746, we are proud to have remained an essential destination for anyone in search of fine paintings and sculpture. It has become apparent everyone remembers their first encounter with us, and no wonder - over our centuries of history we have been committed to delivering wholesome and enjoyable experience to anyone who walks through our doors.
Assocation Syndicale Professionnelle de Peintres et Sculpteurs Français, Gazette du Salon d’Hiver, (Paris, 1972).
Bruntjen, S., John Boydell, 1719 – 1804 : A Study of Art Patronage and Publishing in Georgian London (New York, 1985).
Cobb, S., ‘John Boydell and the depiction of Welsh scenery in reproductive prints, 1750-1850’, National Library of Wales Journal, Vol. XXXVI, no.4 (2017), 529 – 552.
Gladwell Brothers, A Few Words on Art: Which are also Words of Advice and Warning (London, 1887)
Gladwell & Co. Limited, Articles of Association (East Dulwich, 1929)
Gladwell & Co., Modern Works of Art, Adelphi Press, (London, 1908)
Graves, A., The Royal Academy of Arts: A Complete Dictionary of Contributors and their work from its foundation in 1769 to 1904 (London, 1906).
Graves, A., Catalogue of the Works of the Late Edwin Landseer, RA (London, 1874).
Graves, A., Art Sales from Early in the Eighteenth Century to Early in the Twentieth Century, Vol 1: A to G (London, 1918).
Griffiths, A., Prints and Printmaking (London, 1996).
Henry Graves & Co., Ltd & Gladwell & Co. Ltd, Picture Restoration, London 1929
Patterson & Shipman, Exhibition of Dutch & Flemish Masters 17th, 18th & 19th Centuries, (London, 1964), Exhibition Catalogue.
Patterson & Shipman, Christmas Exhibition of Paintings under £300 (London, 1964), Exhibition Catalogue.
Roberts, W., Sir William Beechey, R. A. (London, 1907).
Robson, W., Robson’s London Directory, street key, and conveyance list, particularising the residence of 60,000 establishments in London and its environs (Mulitple Editions, London, 1833 – 1891).
WH Patterson, Summer Exhibition of Helen Bradley (London, 1979), Exhibition Catalogue.
1841 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
1851 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
1861 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
1871 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
1881 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
1891 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
1901 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
1911 England Census., The National Archives of the UK, London.
London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1938
London, England, Church of England Births and Baptisms, 1813-1923
England and Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1837-1915
UK Poll books and Electoral Registers, 1538-1893
London, England, Land Tax Valuations, 1910
London, England, Electoral Registers, 1832-1965
London, England, City Directories, 1736-1943
England and Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995
The Complete Letters of Vincent Van Gogh, Volume 1, (Thames and Hudson, London 1958)
The Year’s Art, 1894
The Year’s Art, 1895
The Year’s Art, 1896
Art Trade Journal, May 1938
With special acknowledgement to Mr. T. Woodcock - Rouge Croix Pursuivant - The College of Arms for his excellent research in the 1980s into the history of the company. With special thanks also to Carole Thorpe and Val Davies for their help and memories.
Every family business has its own intriguing story. I hope that I have been able to do justice to ours in this book.
My father, my mother, my sister, my brother and I are thankful to all the extraordinary individuals and families who have paved the way. We are grateful to our forebears for their foresight and consistent conscientious dedication to this beautiful old firm.
Every day we strive to embody the values, heritage, and ethos of our predecessors. We realise we are custodians of the gallery, just as each of us is a custodian of our art.
My dream and that of my family is to share our passionate commitment to the Company and to the art that we love. We hope to inspire those around us and to align our family values with those of our incredible team and you, our loyal friends. We realise that this is a never-ending journey.
Thank you for reading.
Glenn Anthony Fuller“This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
Sir Winston Churchill
