> back to previous page

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

The Painting

A pen, ink and watercolour measuring 15" x 19¼". Signed in pencil Nina Carroll. Inscribed verso: ‘Kew Grd’.

About the Artist

Nina Carroll (1932-1990) was a designer of murals, an illustrator of children’s books and a watercolour artist. She studied at Cheltenham School of Art and at the Ruskin School, Oxford. She lived in Kettering and later in Oxford. Her husband, John Steane, was headmaster of Kettering Grammar School in 1964 to 1976. Both Nina and her husband were founder members of the Kettering Civic Society, and John became their first Secretary. She exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Royal Society of Watercolour Painters, the Society of Women Artists and the New England Art Club. Her works are in the collection of the Guildhall Museum, Northampton and the Alfred East Art Gallery in Kettering, amongst others.

The Subject

The Palm House, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Designed by Decimus Burton and expertly engineered by Richard Turner, the Palm House at Kew Gardens was constructed between 1844 and 1848. It is considered by experts to be the most important surviving Victorian iron and glass structure in the world. It was designed to accommodate the exotic palms being collected and introduced to Europe in early Victorian times. The project was pioneering, as it was the first time engineers had used wrought iron to span such large widths without supporting columns. This technique was borrowed from the shipbuilding industry; from a distance the glasshouse resembles an upturned hull. The result was a vast, light, lofty space that could easily accommodate the crowns of large palms. The painting depicts a view from the elevated walkway that runs round the Palm House.

Nina Carroll

The Palm House, Royal Botanic Gardens Kew