This is a design drawing in pencil, ink, and coloured wash on tracing paper for Mr Bell's Clock Tower, Clarence Ironworks, by Philip Webb. The drawing is undated, but the project was undertaken in 1873. The sheet contains three sections and two plans showing the air shafts of the clock tower. The scale and dimensions are indicated. The paper is folded and tearing in some areas.
Webb designed the clock tower for Bell Brothers ironworks at Port Clarence in Stockton-on-Tees. He had already worked on two houses for Lowthian Bell, Rounton Grange and Washington Grange, but Webb was not accustomed to designing for industrial buildings. Nonetheless, he designed the tower without ever having seen the ironworks. It was demolished in 1930, but several drawings for the project are in the collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Philip Speakman Webb (Oxford, 1831-Sussex, 1915) was a prominent British architect who designed numerous buildings throughout Great Britain. Known for his contributions to British vernacular architecture, Webb was also a skilled draughtsman, and designer of tableware, tiles, stained glass, and furniture. He also designed gravestones and memorials for his friends and clients. Webb lent his hand to many collaborative projects and worked closely with his colleagues, namely William Morris, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and Edward Burne Jones. His precise drawings of animals, particularly birds, frequently adorn tiles, stained glass, textiles, and wallpaper produced by Morris and Co. Webb is best known for designing Morris’ Red House in Bexleyheath, as well as Clouds House, Naworth Castle, and several London town houses. Among his other accomplishments, Webb is attributed with laying the groundwork for the Arts and Crafts and Modern movements, establishing longstanding principles in historic preservation, and creating some of the most influential designs still studied and celebrated today.