John Charles Lewis Sparkes (c.1833 – 11 December 1907) was an English educationalist and college head.
Born in
Brixton
Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th ce ...
, Lambeth UK. He trained at the National Art Training Schools as an art teacher. As an educator, he initiated innovative policies at Lambeth School of Art (later the South London Technical School of Art) where he was Superintendent of Studies. Married in 1868 in Lambeth to
Catherine Adelaide Sparkes (1842-1891), Catherine was also a leading
Art Potter
Arthur Thomas Potter (August 8, 1909January 19, 1998) was a Canadian ice hockey administrator. He was president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) from 1962 to 1964, and oversaw the establishment of a permanent Canada men's nati ...
who exhibited at the annual exhibitions of Howell James & Co. In 1870,
Henry Doulton
Sir Henry Doulton (25 July 1820 – 18 November 1897) was an English businessman, inventor and manufacturer of pottery, instrumental in developing the firm of Royal Doulton.
Life
Born in Vauxhall, Henry was the second of the eight children of Jo ...
became a mentor to Lambeth School of Art and Sparkes proposed that Lambeth and Doultons Art Pottery collaborate. Some prominent students of this collaborative work include
the Barlow Sisters who began under Doulton in 1871.
He was in charge of 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 ...
(including National Art Training School) 1875 to 1898, with the title of Headmaster from 1875 to 1881, and Principal from 1881 to 1898.
[City & Gulds of London Art School](_blank)
[Report of the Departmental Committee on the Royal College of Art (1911), p. 60.]
Works
*''A Handbook to the Practice of Painting'' (1877)
*''The Classical Composition of John Flaxman, Sculptor'' (1879)
*''Hints on Pottery Painting'' (1885)
*''A Manual of Artistic Anatomy'' (1888)
*''Wild Flowers in Art and Nature'' (1894)
*''Potters: their Arts and Crafts'' (1897)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sparkes, John Charles Lewis
1833 births
1907 deaths
Royal College of Art
People from Brixton
British educational theorists