Charles John Allen (2 September 1862 – 1956) was a British sculptor, and a figure in the

New Sculpture New Sculpture was a movement in late 19th-century British sculpture with an emphasis on naturalistic poses and spiritual subjects. The movement was characterised by the production of free-standing statues and statuettes of 'ideal' figures from poe ...

movement.

Biography

Born in

Greenford Greenford () is a suburb in the London Borough of Ealing in west London, England, lying west from Charing Cross. It has a population of 46,787 inhabitants, or 62,126 with the inclusion of Perivale. Greenford is served by Greenford Station (Lo ...

, Middlesex, Allen studied at the

Lambeth School of Art Founded in 1854 as the Lambeth School of Art, the City and Guilds of London Art School is a small specialist art college located in central London, England. Originally founded as a government art school, it is now an independent, not-for-profit ...

and then apprenticed with the London architectural sculpture firm

Farmer & Brindley Farmer & Brindley was a firm of architectural sculptors and ornamentalists based in London, founded by William Farmer (1825–1879) and William Brindley (1832–1919) The firm, located on Westminster Bridge Road in Lambeth, south London, flour ...

in 1879, becoming the assistant to

Hamo Thornycroft Sir William Hamo Thornycroft (9 March 185018 December 1925) was an English sculptor, responsible for some of London's best-known statues, including the statue of Oliver Cromwell outside the Palace of Westminster. He was a keen student of classi ...

for four years. In 1894 Allen moved to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, where he spent more than thirty years as a respected teacher at the University of Liverpool and Vice-Principal at the Liverpool School of Architecture and Applied Arts, which became the Liverpool School of Art in 1905. Allen died in 1956 at Farley Green, Albury, Surrey, where he had lived with his sister since the death of his wife, shortly after his retirement from teaching.

Notable work

* The 1906 monument to Queen Victoria, Liverpool, Allen's masterwork * Two allegorical panels for St. George's Hall, Liverpool, 1894 * The John Heminges and Henry Condell Memorial, London; dated 1895, unveiled 1896. * Marble

reredos A reredos ( , , ) is a large altarpiece, a screen, or decoration placed behind the altar in a church. It often includes religious images. The term ''reredos'' may also be used for similar structures, if elaborate, in secular architecture, for ex ...

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

, London * Wood carvings at

St Albans Cathedral St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Normans, Norman times. It cease ...

* Work at the Liverpool University College (now

University of Liverpool , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

) with architect

Alfred Waterhouse Alfred Waterhouse (19 July 1830 – 22 August 1905) was an English architect, particularly associated with the Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, although he designed using other architectural styles as well. He is perhaps best known f ...

, 1895 * Frieze for the

Royal Insurance Building, Liverpool The Aloft Liverpool Hotel, formerly the Royal Insurance Building, is a historic building located at 1-9 North John Street, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It was built as the head office of the Royal Insurance company. History The building w ...

, c. 1897 * Panels and other work for the Peres Bank,

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

, c. 1900 * War memorial for Eastham Village, 1924 * Architectural sculpture for the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board Building, 1927 * Choir stall canopies and the

font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a typeface. Each font is a matched set of type, with a piece (a "sort") for each glyph. A typeface consists of a range of such fonts that shared an overall design. In mod ...

Ullet Road Unitarian Church Ullet Road Church is a Unitarian church at 57 Ullet Road, Sefton Park, Liverpool. Both the church and its attached hall are separately recorded in the National Heritage List for England as designated Grade I listed buildings. It was the fir ...

, Liverpool

Gallery

File:Victoria Monument, Derby Square, Liverpool.jpg, Victoria Monument, Liverpool File:Dale Street frieze, Royal Insurance Building.jpg, Frieze on the Dale Street side of Royal Insurance Building, Liverpool File:Justice frieze, St George's Hall composite.jpg, Panels of the "Justice" frieze, St George's Hall File:Liverpool frieze, St George's Hall composite.jpg, Panels of the "Liverpool" frieze, St George's Hall File:Font, Ullet Road church.jpg, Font at

, Liverpool

References

External links

*
Portrait
of Allen {{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, C.J. 1862 births 1956 deaths 20th-century English sculptors 19th-century English sculptors 19th-century English male artists 20th-century English male artists Alumni of the Lambeth School of Art British architectural sculptors English male sculptors People from Greenford Sculptors from London