Henrietta Mary Ann Skerrett Montalba (8 April 1848 – 14 September 1893) was a British sculptress, born into a renowned family of artists. She studied art at what was to become the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It offe ...

with fellow-student,

Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, (Louisa Caroline Alberta; 18 March 1848 – 3 December 1939) was the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. In her public life, she was a strong proponent of the arts and highe ...

. The Princess painted a portrait of her which today hangs in the collection of the

National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the l ...

. She first exhibited at the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

in 1876, and her work was often seen at the

Grosvenor Gallery The Grosvenor Gallery was an art gallery in London founded in 1877 by Sir Coutts Lindsay and his wife Blanche. Its first directors were J. Comyns Carr and Charles Hallé. The gallery proved crucial to the Aesthetic Movement because it provided ...

in London. Montalba was rarely separated from her family, residing in later days chiefly at the family home in Venice, Italy. She died in Venice, on September 14, 1893, and was buried near her father in the island cemetery of San Michele. One of her sculptures, a bronze titled Boy Catching a Crab, is in the collection of The

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

Early life

Henrietta Montalba was born on April 8, 1848, the fifth child and the fourth daughter of Anthony Rubens Montalba and Emeline (née Davies), all of whom would attain considerable success as artists. Her birth was at 9 Camden Terrace West, Camden New Town, Saint Pancras in London. Her birth was registered by her mother on 6 October 1848 with the given name Henrietta Mary Ann Skerrett Montalba. Her father's profession was given as gentleman. The 1871 British census shows Anthony Montalba living at 19

Arundel Gardens Arundel Gardens is a street and a communal garden square in Notting Hill, London, one of seven streets between Ladbroke Grove and Kensington Park Road of which five share in a communal garden between them. It was built in the 1860s, towards the ...

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Road M ...

, London, with four daughters, all artists.History of Arundel Gardens
Retrieved Feb 7 2010 Montalba studied first at what was to become the

South Kensington South Kensington, nicknamed Little Paris, is a district just west of Central London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Historically it settled on part of the scattered Middlesex village of Brompton. Its name was supplanted with ...

, and then in the

Accademia di Belle Arti This is a list of the tertiary-level schools or academies of fine art in Italy that are recognised by the Ministero dell'Istruzione, dell'Università e della Ricerca, the Italian ministry of higher education. Accademie di Belle Arti The offic ...

in Venice. Later she became a pupil of

Jules Dalou Aimé-Jules Dalou (31 December 183815 April 1902) was a 19th-century French sculptor, admired for his perceptiveness, execution, and unpretentious realism. Early life Born in Paris to a working-class family of Huguenot background, he was raised ...

, the French sculptor, during his residence in London.

Career

Montalba first exhibited at the

in 1876, and her work was often seen at the

, the New Gallery, and elsewhere. She mainly devoted herself to portrait or fancy busts; some executed in marble, like those of Doctor Mezger of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

(Grosvenor Gallery, 1886), and Dr. Schollander, the Scandinavian artist; others in bronze, like that of the

Marquess of Lorne A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

; but the greater part of her work was executed in

terra cotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

, as in the case of her bust of

Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentary, historical settings ...

(Grosvenor Gallery, 1883). Other works worthy of note were "A Dalecarlian Peasant Woman" and "The Raven," representing a raven seated on a bust of

Pallas Pallas may refer to: Astronomy * 2 Pallas asteroid ** Pallas family, a group of asteroids that includes 2 Pallas * Pallas (crater), a crater on Earth's moon Mythology * Pallas (Giant), a son of Uranus and Gaia, killed and flayed by Athena * Pa ...

, from the poem by

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...

. Her last work was of a more ambitious nature, being a life-size figure of "A Venetian Boy Catching a Crab," executed in bronze, which was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1893, and at the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordi ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, in the same year. Her marble bust of

Richard Burchett Richard Burchett (1815–1875) was a British artist and educator on the fringes of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, who was for over twenty years the Headmaster of what later became the Royal College of Art. He was later described as "a promin ...

, headmaster of the South Kensington Schools, has been transferred to the new building of the

Royal Academy of Art The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purpo ...

, along with its setting designed by George Clausen.

Royal favour

She was on terms of friendship with her fellow-student

, who painted a portrait of her and presented it to the Canadian Academy of Arts in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

(now in the collection of the

). Both Henrietta and her sister Clara spent time with the Princess in Canada, painting landscapes. Henrietta was rarely separated from her family, living in later days chiefly in Venice, and making frequent visits with them in Italy, Sweden, and elsewhere. Besides her artistic gifts she possessed great linguistic talent.

Death and legacy

In 1892 her health began to fail her, and after a lingering illness she died in Venice, on September 14, 1893, and was buried near her father in the cemetery of San Michele. One of her sculptures, a bronze titled ''Boy Catching a Crab'', is displayed in

The Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

.Biography of the Montalba sisters
Retrieved August 2011 Her marble bust of her principal at college, the heavily bearded painter

, set in an elaborate pink alabaster memorial frame designed by George Clausen, has followed the Royal College of Art to its new Darwin Building on

Kensington Gore Kensington Gore is the name of a U-shaped thoroughfare on the south side of Hyde Park in central London, England. The streets connect the Royal Albert Hall with the Royal College of Art, the Royal Geographical Society, and in Kensington Garde ...

, where it is installed in a courtyard.Survey of London
pre-move

Notes

References

* *

External links

Biography of the Montalba sisters
Retrieved August 2011 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Montalba, Henrietta 1856 births 1893 deaths 19th-century British sculptors 19th-century English women artists Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia alumni English women sculptors Sibling artists