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Copyright © 2008-2012 Hargrave Fine Art, Newton, Northants

Charlotte M. Alston

The Albert Memorial, Hyde Park, London

The Painting

A watercolour measuring 12½" x 9½". Signed C. M. Alston.

About the Artist

Charlotte M. Alston (fl. 1886-1914) was a painter of churches and still life. She lived in London, including in Brockley in the Borough of Lewisham. In 1907 she is recorded as living at 57 Bedford Gardens, Kensington. She exhibited at the Royal Academy (3) in 1887-88 and 1914; at the Society of Women Artists (5); the Royal Society of British Artists (10); and the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours (1) amongst others.

The Subject

The Albert Memorial, Hyde Park, London. The Albert Memorial was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott and completed in 1872, with the giant seated statue of Prince Albert by John H. Foley added in 1876. The memorial to Prince Albert, who died in 1861, remains a supreme example of High Victorian decorative art. The monument is enriched with much sculpture and is decorated with mosaic, enamel and other techniques. Around the memorial are sculptured groups representing the industrial arts: Agriculture, Manufacture, Commerce and Engineering. At the base of the stepped podium, linked by elaborate railings, are four further sculptured groups representing Europe, Asia, Africa and America.