Charles Harrison Townsend
Encyclopedia
Charles Harrison Townsend (13 May 1851 — 26 December 1928) was an English architect
. He was born in Birkenhead
, educated at Birkenhead School
and articled to the Liverpool
architect Walter Scott in 1870. He moved to London with his family in 1880 and entered partnership with the London architect Thomas Lewis Banks in 1884. Townsend became a member of the Art Workers Guild
in 1888 and in the same year was elected a Fellow of the more conservative Royal Institute of British Architects
. He remained an active member of both organisations throughout his career and was elected Master of the Art Workers Guild in 1903.
(1892-94); the Whitechapel Art Gallery (1895-99); and the Horniman Museum
(1898-1901).
These buildings are usually identified with the Art Nouveau
or Arts and Crafts
styles, but Townsend's originality makes his style difficult to classify. Service calls him a “rogue” architect. Pevsner describes the buildings as "without question the most remarkable example of a reckless repudiation of tradition among English architects of the time". The Horniman Museum in particular moved a contemporary observer, writing in 1902, the year after the building was opened, to hail it as "a new series of frank and fearless thoughts expressed and co-ordinated in stone". Townsend seems to have been influenced by the Romanesque Revival
style of the American architect H. H. Richardson
— he was certainly familiar with that architect’s work as his journalist brother, Horace Townsend, had written a lengthy article about Richardson.
Notable among Townsend’s other works are: All Saints, Ennismore Gardens, London (now the Russian Orthodox Cathedral) (1892); the picturesque St. Martin, Blackheath, Surrey (which is apparently modelled on an Italian wayside chapel) (1893); the United Free Church, Woodford Green
(1901), and St. Mary the Virgin, Great Warley
, Essex (1902).
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
. He was born in Birkenhead
Birkenhead
Birkenhead is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool...
, educated at Birkenhead School
Birkenhead School
Birkenhead School is an independent, selective, co-educational school located on the Wirral Peninsula in the northwest of England. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference.-Overview:The school is subdivided into...
and articled to the Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
architect Walter Scott in 1870. He moved to London with his family in 1880 and entered partnership with the London architect Thomas Lewis Banks in 1884. Townsend became a member of the Art Workers Guild
Art Workers Guild
The Art Workers Guild or Art-Workers' Guild is an organisation established in 1884 by a group of British architects associated with the ideas of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. The guild promoted the 'unity of all the arts', denying the distinction between fine and applied art...
in 1888 and in the same year was elected a Fellow of the more conservative Royal Institute of British Architects
Royal Institute of British Architects
The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...
. He remained an active member of both organisations throughout his career and was elected Master of the Art Workers Guild in 1903.
Works
Townsend’s career was devoted mainly to domestic and small-scale ecclesiastical commissions, but his reputation rests principally on three strikingly original public buildings in London: the Bishopsgate InstituteBishopsgate Institute
Bishopsgate Institute is a cultural institute, located on Bishopsgate, in proximity of Liverpool Street station and Spitalfields market, London, England.Bishopsgate Institute was established in 1895...
(1892-94); the Whitechapel Art Gallery (1895-99); and the Horniman Museum
Horniman Museum
The Horniman Museum is a museum in Forest Hill, South London, England. Commissioned in 1898, it opened in 1901 and was designed by Charles Harrison Townsend in the Arts and Crafts style....
(1898-1901).
These buildings are usually identified with the Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
or Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
styles, but Townsend's originality makes his style difficult to classify. Service calls him a “rogue” architect. Pevsner describes the buildings as "without question the most remarkable example of a reckless repudiation of tradition among English architects of the time". The Horniman Museum in particular moved a contemporary observer, writing in 1902, the year after the building was opened, to hail it as "a new series of frank and fearless thoughts expressed and co-ordinated in stone". Townsend seems to have been influenced by the Romanesque Revival
Romanesque Revival architecture
Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...
style of the American architect H. H. Richardson
Henry Hobson Richardson
Henry Hobson Richardson was a prominent American architect who designed buildings in Albany, Boston, Buffalo, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and other cities. The style he popularized is named for him: Richardsonian Romanesque...
— he was certainly familiar with that architect’s work as his journalist brother, Horace Townsend, had written a lengthy article about Richardson.
Notable among Townsend’s other works are: All Saints, Ennismore Gardens, London (now the Russian Orthodox Cathedral) (1892); the picturesque St. Martin, Blackheath, Surrey (which is apparently modelled on an Italian wayside chapel) (1893); the United Free Church, Woodford Green
Woodford Green
Woodford Green, formerly in the county of Essex, is part of the North East London suburb of Woodford, on the edge of Epping Forest, mostly within the London Borough of Redbridge with a small part on the western side of the green within the London Borough of Waltham Forest .-History:Woodford Green...
(1901), and St. Mary the Virgin, Great Warley
St. Mary the Virgin, Great Warley
St. Mary the Virgin is a Grade I listed parish church for Great Warley in the Brentwood borough of Essex, England. It is noted for its unique art nouveau interior, designed by Sir William Reynolds-Stephens....
, Essex (1902).