The Building of the Victoria and Albert Museum
Oil Painting
1903 (painted)
1903 (painted)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Only 30 years after its founding in 1857, the Victoria and Albert Museum had outgrown its original buildings. In 1890, the British government sponsored a design competition for a new wing, which was won by Aston Webb. Construction of the new building, with its famous dome, only started in 1899 and lasted until 1909. Alexander Jamieson's painting captures the building works at their midpoint, with the dome, swathed in scaffolding, beginning to take recognisable form.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
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| Title | The Building of the Victoria and Albert Museum (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Oil on canvas |
| Brief description | Oil painting entitled 'The Building of the Victoria and Albert Museum' by Alexander Jamieson. London, 1903. |
| Physical description | An oil painting showing an exterior view of the dome of the Victoria and Albert Museum in the process of being built. Scaffolding rises in front of the building and horsedrawn carriages, motorcars and pedestrians pass in front of the scaffolding. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | 'Alex Jamieson 1903' (Signed and dated lower right) |
| Object history | Purchased, 1971, from Katharine Jamieson, daughter of the artist. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Place depicted | |
| Summary | Only 30 years after its founding in 1857, the Victoria and Albert Museum had outgrown its original buildings. In 1890, the British government sponsored a design competition for a new wing, which was won by Aston Webb. Construction of the new building, with its famous dome, only started in 1899 and lasted until 1909. Alexander Jamieson's painting captures the building works at their midpoint, with the dome, swathed in scaffolding, beginning to take recognisable form. |
| Bibliographic reference | Alexander Jamieson and his wife Biddy Macdonald, London : Hazlitt Gallery : 1970
no. 4 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | P.2-1971 |
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| Record created | May 25, 2006 |
| Record URL |
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