Whitworth Wallis (23 June 1855 – 16 January 1927) was the first director of

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery (BM&AG) is a museum and art gallery in Birmingham, England. It has a collection of international importance covering fine art, ceramics, metalwork, jewellery, natural history, archaeology, ethnography, local ...

(opened in 1885). He was knighted in 1912.

Early years

Whitworth Wallis was born in

Handsworth, Birmingham Handsworth () is a suburb and an inner-city area of Birmingham in the West Midlands. Historically in Staffordshire, Handsworth lies just outside Birmingham City Centre and near the town of Smethwick. History The name ''Handsworth'' origina ...

, and was educated privately in London, Paris and Hanover.

Family

He was the son of artist

George Wallis George Wallis (1811–1891) was an artist, museum curator and art educator. He was the first Keeper of Fine Art Collection at South Kensington Museum (later the Victoria & Albert Museum) in London. Early years George Wallis, son of John Wal ...

(1811–1891), also the first Keeper of Fine Art Collection at South Kensington Museum (later the

Victoria & 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 ...

), and Matilda Condell (1818–1888), who married in 1842. His father's lifelong friend was Sir

Joseph Whitworth Sir Joseph Whitworth, 1st Baronet (21 December 1803 – 22 January 1887) was an English engineer, entrepreneur, inventor and philanthropist. In 1841, he devised the British Standard Whitworth system, which created an accepted standard for scre ...

. Two of his siblings died in infancy. The others were George Harry (1847–1936; the first Director of Nottingham Castle Museum & Art Gallery, opened 1878), Jane Kate (1849–1934), and Rosa (1857–c.1939; also a successful artist). The family lived at 4, The Residences,

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 ...

. He died in Stratford-on-Avon on 16 January 1927 at the age of 71.

Career

Whitworth, like George Harry, was trained by his father at the South Kensington Museum. He was placed in charge of Bethnal Green Museum (later the

V&A Museum of Childhood Young V&A, formerly the V&A Museum of Childhood, is a branch of the Victoria and Albert Museum (the "V&A"), which is the United Kingdom's national museum of applied arts. It is in Bethnal Green and is located on the Green itself in the East End ...

) in 1879 and became curator of the newly formed Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery in 1885. He received a knighthood in 1912, the first time the distinction had been bestowed on a provincial municipal officer. Whitworth was a Member of the Council of The Birmingham & Midland Institute (1891–1927) and Honorary Secretary of the Institute (1902–1926). He was also a Trustee of Shakespeare's Birthplace and a member of the council of the

National Art Collections Fund Art Fund (formerly the National Art Collections Fund) is an independent membership-based British charity, which raises funds to aid the acquisition of artworks for the nation. It gives grants and acts as a channel for many gifts and bequests, as ...

References

Sources

* Reports of the Council of The Birmingham & Midland Institute (1890–1927) *''By the Gains of Industry – Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery 1885–1985'', Stuart Davies, * Obituary, ''The Herald'', 22 January 1927. 1855 births 1927 deaths Directors of museums in the United Kingdom People from Birmingham, West Midlands People from South Kensington {{England-bio-stub