View source for Alfred Gilbert

{{short description|British sculptor}}
{{about|the sculptor|the athlete and inventor |Alfred Carlton Gilbert}}
{{good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2012}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix   =
| name               = Alfred Gilbert
| honorific_suffix   = {{Post-nominals|country=GBR|RA}} 
| image              = Portrait of Alfred Gilbert (cropped).jpg
| landscape          = 
| alt                = Black and white photograph of man's head and shoulders in side profile
| caption            = Portrait by [[Frederick Hollyer]] (1887)
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|1854|08|12|df=yes}}
| birth_place        = London, England
| death_date         = {{Death date and age|1934|11|04|1854|08|12|df=yes}}
| death_place        = London, England
| education          = {{hlist|[[Heatherley School of Fine Art|Thomas J. Heatherley School of Art]]|[[Royal Academy Schools]]|[[École des Beaux-Arts]]}}
| occupation         = Sculptor
| years_active       = 1878–1932
| era                = Victorian
| notable_works      = [[Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain]], Tomb of [[Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale|Prince Albert Victor]], [[Queen Alexandra Memorial]]
| spouse             = {{plainlist|
* Alice Jane Gilbert 
* Stéphanie Quaghebeur
}}
| children           = 5, including [[Caprina Fahey]]
}}
'''Sir Alfred Gilbert''' {{Post-nominals|country=GBR|RA}} (12 August 1854{{snd}}4 November 1934) was an English [[sculpture|sculptor]]. He was born in London and studied sculpture under [[Joseph Boehm]], [[Matthew Noble]], [[Édouard Lantéri]] and [[Pierre-Jules Cavelier]]. His first work of importance was ''The Kiss of Victory'', followed by the trilogy of ''Perseus Arming'', ''Icarus'' and ''Comedy and Tragedy''. His most creative years were from the late 1880s to the mid-1890s, when he produced several celebrated works such as a memorial for the [[Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria]] and the [[Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain|Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain Eros]]<ref>[https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1265625 On the National Heritage List for England, the fountain's statutory address is SHAFTESBURY MEMORIAL FOUNTAIN EROS, PICCADILLY CIRCUS W1]</ref> on [[Piccadilly Circus]].

As well as sculpture, Gilbert explored other techniques such as [[goldsmithing]] and [[damascening]]. He painted watercolours and drew book illustrations. He was made a member of the [[Royal Academy of Arts]] in 1892, yet his personal life was beginning to unravel as he took on too many commissions and entered into debt, whilst at the same time his wife's mental health deteriorated. Gilbert received a royal commission for the tomb of [[Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale|Prince Albert Victor]] in 1892, but was unable to finish it and the number of complaints from other dissatisfied clients grew. By the mid-1900s, Gilbert had been forced to declare himself bankrupt and to resign from the Royal Academy. He moved to Bruges in disgrace and separated from his wife. He later remarried, entering a period when he created few artworks.

In the 1920s, his career was rehabilitated with the help of journalist Isabel McAllister. He returned to England and finally completed the tomb of Prince Albert Victor, as well as taking on new commissions such as the [[Queen Alexandra Memorial]]. In 1932, Gilbert was reinstated as a member of the Royal Academy and was also knighted. He died in 1934, at the age of 80. Gilbert was a central inspiration for the [[New Sculpture]] movement and in the 21st-century is regarded as one of the foremost sculptors of the [[Victorian age]].

==Early life==
Alfred Gilbert was born 12 August 1854 at 13 [[Berners Street]], near [[Oxford Street]] in central London. He was the eldest child of Charlotte Cole and Alfred Gilbert, who were both musicians.<ref name="ODNB">{{Cite ODNB|id=33398|title=Gilbert, Sir Alfred}}</ref> Berners Street was at that time an area popular with artists and musicians: there were shops selling stained glass, carvings, printings and [[bronze]] artworks; [[Ford Madox Brown]] and [[Edward Hodges Baily]] had studios; Leigh's Academy (run by [[James Mathews Leigh]]) was nearby, later becoming the [[Heatherley School of Fine Art|Thomas J. Heatherley School of Art]].<ref name="Dorment">{{cite book |last1=Dorment |first1=Richard |title=Alfred Gilbert |date=1985 |publisher=Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art (Yale University Press) |location=New Haven and London |isbn=0300036981}}</ref>{{rp|6}} Gilbert first attended William Kemshead's Academy for a few months in 1863, which was a naval school near [[Portsmouth]].<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|8}}  He then went to the [[Mercers' School]] in the [[City of London]], afterwards switching to [[Aldenham School]] in [[Hertfordshire]], where his father taught music.<ref name="EA">{{cite book |last1=Stuart Gray |first1=Alexander |title=Edwardian architecture: A biographical dictionary |date=1985 |publisher=Duckworth |isbn=9780715610121 |page=189}}</ref><ref name="ODNB" /> Gilbert later commented that "I always hated school".<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|10}} He enjoyed more spending time with his paternal grandfather, who taught him how to [[woodwork]].<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|3}} At Aldenham, Gilbert began to make portraits of his schoolfellows with clay he took from ditches and the headmaster Alfred Leeman was encouraging, to the extent that Gilbert made a full-length seated portrait of him in 1872.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|12}}

Gilbert's father pushed him to become a surgeon, so he applied to the [[Royal College of Surgeons]] and was accepted in 1872.<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=y|wstitle=Gilbert, Alfred|volume=12|page=7}}</ref> He then went for a scholarship at [[Middlesex Hospital]] to work as a surgeon and was rejected, allowing him to pursue his true interest of [[sculpture]]. Studying first at the Thomas J. Heatherley School from 1872 until 1873, afterwards he went to the [[Royal Academy Schools]] from 1873 until 1875.<ref name="ODNB" /> His fellow students included [[Frank Dicksee]], [[Johnston Forbes-Robertson]], [[John Macallan Swan]], [[Hamo Thornycroft]] and [[J. W. Waterhouse]].<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|15}} Eager to learn, he also worked in the studios of Sir [[Joseph Boehm]], [[Matthew Noble]], and William Gibbs Rogers.<ref name="EB1911" /> Gilbert later credited Boehm and his assistant [[Édouard Lantéri]] as his true teachers.<ref name="ODNB" />

Gilbert travelled to Paris to study at the [[École des Beaux-Arts]] under [[Pierre-Jules Cavelier]]. He had fallen in love with his first cousin, Alice Jane Gilbert, and they were forced to [[elope]].<ref name="ODNB" /> In Paris they lived first at the Hôtel l'Artesian at Place de la Madeleine and then at 17 rue Humboldt.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|22}} Gilbert returned to England in April 1878 to be at the deathbed of his younger brother Gordon, who succumbed to [[tuberculosis]] at the age of 20.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|29}} Later that year, Gilbert moved to Rome with his wife and two young children.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|33}} They lived at 63 Vicolo de'Miracoli, experiencing money problems as Gilbert waited to be paid for commissions whilst also having to pay rent.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|34}} By 1881, Gilbert was splitting his time between a new studio space at 18 Via San Basilio in Rome and [[Capri]].<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|37}} He returned to England in 1884.<ref name="RA">{{cite web |title=Sir Alfred Gilbert RA (1854–1934) |url=https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/name/alfred-gilbert-ra |website=Royal Academy of Arts |access-date=17 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200616111636/https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/name/alfred-gilbert-ra |archive-date=16 June 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Career==
===Early works===
[[File:PerseusArming Gilbert-1906 QldArtGall-20171112-1.jpg|left|thumb|''Perseus Arming'', an inspiration for the [[New Sculpture]] movement|alt=refer to caption]]
Gilbert's first work of importance was ''The Kiss of Victory'' (1878–1881), which depicted a Roman soldier dying in the arms of Victory. He moved with his family to Rome in order to create the sculpture in marble, attracted by famed sculptors of the [[Renaissance]] such as [[Cellini]], [[Donatello]], [[Giambologna]] and [[Verrocchio]].<ref name="ODNB" /> It was exhibited at the [[Royal Academy of Arts]] in 1882.<ref name="ODNB" />

''Perseus Arming'' (1882) was inspired by a visit to Florence and influenced by Donatello's ''[[David (Donatello, bronze)|David]]'' and Cellini's ''[[Perseus with the Head of Medusa]]''. It was Gilbert's first statue made in bronze.<ref name="ODNB" /> The work was acclaimed and led [[Frederic Leighton]] to commission ''Icarus'' (1884), which was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1884, along with ''Study of a Head'' (1882–83). Gilbert also created ''The Enchanted Chair'' ({{circa|1885}}), only to destroy it again.<ref name="EB1911" /> He was commissioned by the Baroness von Fahnenberg to design a mausoleum in [[Spa, Belgium]], Belgium but she died without having signed a final agreement, leading him to sue for compensation.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|51}}

Gilbert later stated to [[Joseph Hatton]] that the bronze statues ''Perseus Arming'', ''Icarus'' and ''Comedy and Tragedy'' (1891–92) formed a trilogy which referenced his own life. ''Perseus Arming'' had a huge impact on a new generation of artists, becoming a particular inspiration for the [[New Sculpture]] movement, since the method of [[Casting (metalworking)|casting]] ([[Lost-wax casting|lost wax]]) was new to the English milieu and its height of 29 inches was innovative.<ref name="ODNB" /> It was larger than a bibelot, which might decorate a drawing room, yet smaller than a typical sculpture.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|40}}

===Creative period===
Having returned to England, Gilbert took a studio in a complex off [[Fulham Road]], where he built a [[foundry]] with [[Thomas Stirling Lee]] and [[Edward Onslow Ford]].<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|58}} His next major work was again an innovation in terms of size; the Fawcett memorial (1885–87) featured a bronze bust of politician [[Henry Fawcett]] above seven small detailed figures of around fifteen inches, which individually represented Fawcett's virtues.<ref name="ODNB" /><ref name="Monkhouse">{{cite journal |last1=Monkhouse |first1=Cosmo W. |title=Alfred Gilbert, A.R.A.—I and II |journal=Magazine of Art |date=1888–1889 |volume=12 |issue=1–4 |pages=37–40 |url=http://www.victorianweb.org/sculpture/gilbert/55.html |access-date=8 August 2020}}</ref> The memorial received praise from critics when it was unveiled at [[Westminster Abbey]] on 29 January 1887.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|67}} By then Gilbert had been commissioned to produce another memorial, this time for [[Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria]], which was placed in the Great Hall at [[Winchester Castle]]. From the late 1880s to the mid-1890s he was in his most creative period. He diversified into [[goldsmithing]] and [[damascening]], making an [[epergne]] (1887–1890) given to [[Queen Victoria]] by officers of the [[British Army]] and a chain for the mayor of [[Preston, Lancashire|Preston]] (1888–1892).<ref name="ODNB" /> Gilbert produced medals, such as the cast bronze portrait of [[Matthew Ridley Corbet]] (1881) and the struck bronze medal marking 50 years of the [[Art Union of London]] (1887).<ref name="OAO" /> He also created spoons, cups, dishes and jewellery; many of his designs can be seen in the collection of Stichting van Caloen on display at [[Loppem Castle]] in Belgium.<ref name="Read-Review">{{cite journal |last1=Read |first1=Benedict |title=Alfred Gilbert. London, Royal Academy |journal=The Burlington Magazine |date=1986 |volume=128 |issue=999 |pages=446–449 |url=http://www.jstor.com/stable/882565|issn=0007-6287}}</ref><ref name="OAO">{{cite journal |last1=Stocker |first1=Mark |title=Gilbert, Sir Alfred |journal=Oxford Art Online |date=2003 |doi=10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.T032178}}</ref> [[Marion Spielmann]], a contemporary art critic, wrote in 1901 "his taste is so pure, his genius so exquisitely right, that he may give full rein to his fancy without danger where another man would run riot and come to grief".<ref name="Spielmann">{{cite book |last1=Spielmann |first1=M. H. (Marion Harry) |title=British sculpture and sculptors of today |date=1901 |publisher=Cassell |location=London, New York |page=85 |url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924030669364#page/n85/mode/2up|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160426222117/http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924030669364#page/n85/mode/2up |archive-date=26 April 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Fuente Eros, Piccadilly Circus, Londres, Inglaterra, 2014-08-11, DD 159.JPG|thumb|The [[Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain]] in [[Piccadilly Circus]]. [[Anteros]] is one of the first statues to be cast in [[aluminium]].|alt=The Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain]]
Gilbert's next work of note was the [[Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain]] (1886–1893).<ref name="ODNB" /> The philanthropist [[Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury]], had died in late 1885 and it was swiftly decided to commemorate his life with two monuments, one at Westminster Abbey and another at [[Cambridge Circus, London|Cambridge Circus]], at the beginning of [[Shaftesbury Avenue]] (which was concurrently named after him).<ref name="BHO">{{cite journal |last1=Sheppard |first1=F.H.W. |title=Survey of London |journal=British History Online |date=1963 |volume=31 & 32 |pages=101–110 |url=https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vols31-2/pt2/pp101-110|publisher=London County Council |location=London |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180807155609/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vols31-2/pt2/pp101-110 |archive-date=7 August 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> The memorial was commissioned in 1886 and officially opened at [[Piccadilly Circus]] in London in 1893. Gilbert had accepted the commission with assurances that he would be given used [[gunmetal]] to melt down and reuse, however the government did not supply him with it. He had already produced the casts, so he was forced to buy [[copper]] to use instead, which meant that he took a substantial financial hit; the fountain should have cost {{GBP|3000|1886|long=no|about=yes}} and in the end the figure was {{GBP|7000|1886|long=no|about=yes}}, with Gilbert being forced to make up the difference.<ref name="ODNB" />{{Inflation/fn|UK}} It was only because he had been experimenting with different techniques that he was able to cast [[aluminium]], a then new material which he used to create the statue which topped the sculpture.<ref name="ODNB" /> It is commonly believed that the statue depicts [[Eros]], but it is actually his brother [[Anteros]], the avenger of unrequited love.<ref name="Bowman">{{cite web |title=Sculptures by Sir Alfred Gilbert |url=https://www.bowmansculpture.com/gallery/artist/alfred-gilbert |website=Bowman Sculpture |access-date=17 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200616111638/https://www.bowmansculpture.com/gallery/artist/alfred-gilbert |archive-date=16 June 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref> The fountain is now well-regarded and seen as a national treasure, but at the time it was controversial, with opinions on its value mixed. The mainstream media criticised the design of the fountain which led to passing flower girls being drenched in water and hooliganism meant it needed to be guarded for a year. Eight drinking cups on chains had been provided for pedestrians to quench their thirst and Gilbert stated that just one day after the opening, only two cups remained. He referred to the "painful experience of witnessing the utter failure of my intention and design".<ref name="BHO" />

In this period, Gilbert made statues of [[Donald Mackay, 11th Lord Reay]], and prison reformer [[John Howard (prison reformer)|John Howard]]. He produced memorials of the Duke of Clarence and of [[Lord Arthur Russell]], and a memorial font for the son of the [[John Thynne, 4th Marquess of Bath|4th Marquess of Bath]].<ref name="EB1911"/> He produced busts of [[Cyril Flower, 1st Baron Battersea|Cyril Flower]], John R. Clayton (later broken up by the artist), [[George Frederic Watts]], [[Henry Tate]], [[George Birdwood]], [[Richard Owen]] and [[George Grove]]. He also designed the statue of [[David Davies (industrialist)|David Davies]] of Llandinam which stands in front of the [[Barry Docks]] offices.<ref name="EB1911"/>

Gilbert was made a member of the [[Royal Academy of Arts]] in 1892.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/name/alfred-gilbert-ra |title=Sir Alfred Gilbert RA (1854–1934) |website=Royal Academy |access-date=17 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200616111636/https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/art-artists/name/alfred-gilbert-ra |archive-date=16 June 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref> He received many other honours, such as [[Royal Victorian Order]] of the fourth class (1897).<ref name="ODNB" /> He became a member of the [[International Society of Sculptors, Painters and Gravers]] and in 1889 he won the Grand Prix at the [[Exposition Universelle (1889)|Exposition Universelle]] in Paris.<ref name="Gla">{{cite web|url=http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/organization.php?id=msib2_1203018932|title=The International Society of Sculptors, Painters and Gravers|work=Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851–1951|publisher=[[Glasgow University]]|access-date=31 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130701230213/http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/organization.php?id=msib2_1203018932|archive-date=1 July 2013|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="EB1911"/> By the time of Boehm's death in 1890, Gilbert had become England's best known living sculptor. He was a member of the [[Athenaeum Club, London|Athenaeum]] and [[Garrick Club|Garrick]] clubs in London and was a well-known figure with his cape, sombrero and walking-stick.<ref name="ODNB" /> His friends included the artists Watts, [[Edward Burne-Jones]], [[Frederic Leighton]] and [[James Abbott McNeill Whistler]].<ref name="Whistler">{{cite web |title=Alfred Gilbert, 1854–1934 |url=http://www.whistler.arts.gla.ac.uk/biog/Gilb_A.htm |website=Centre for Whistler Studies |publisher=University of Glasgow |access-date=18 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051105053823/http://www.whistler.arts.gla.ac.uk/biog/Gilb_A.htm |archive-date=5 November 2005 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="ODNB" /> Befriending [[Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll|Princess Louise]] had brought him into [[High society (social class)|high society]] and he built a large house for his family with an attached studio in 16 Maida Vale, in north London. Gilbert's generous and extravagant lifestyle was leading him into debt and as his fame grew, his private life began to fall apart. His wife Alice was not at ease in London society and preferred to stay in a rented house in [[Gomshall]], Surrey; soon after the unveiling of the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain, she had a breakdown and was committed to an asylum.<ref name="ODNB" /> Without Boehm to advise him, Gilbert found it difficult to track his commissions. He almost never drew up contracts with clients and it was easy for disagreements to arise.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|103}}

[[File:Arthur Robertson - Drawing for Alfred Gilbert's project for the tomb of the Duke of Clarence - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|left|Drawing by Arthur Robertson of Alfred Gilbert's plans for the tomb of Prince Albert Victor|alt=refer to caption]]
In 1892, Gilbert was asked by the Prince (later [[Edward VII]]) and Princess of Wales ([[Alexandra of Denmark]]) to build the tomb for their recently deceased eldest son [[Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale|Prince Albert Victor]] in [[St George's Chapel, Windsor]].<ref name="ODNB" /> Prince Albert Victor had been heir to the throne and died of pneumonia resulting from contracting influenza during the [[1889–1890 flu pandemic]].<ref name="Victor">{{Cite ODNB|id=275|title=Albert Victor, Prince, duke of Clarence and Avondale}}</ref> The tomb has been described by a critic as "the finest single example of late 19th-century sculpture in the British Isles".<ref name="roskill">Roskill, Mark (1968). "Alfred Gilbert's Monument to the Duke of Clarence: A Study in the Sources of Later Victorian Sculpture." ''The Burlington Magazine''. Vol. 110 Issue 789, pp. 699–704.</ref> A recumbent effigy of the prince wearing a Hussar uniform lies above the tomb. Kneeling over him is an angel, holding a heavenly crown. The tomb is surrounded by an elaborate railing, with figures of saints.<ref>St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle (2008). [http://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/tour/tour_albert.asp "Albert Memorial Chapel"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610061321/http://www.stgeorges-windsor.org/tour/tour_albert.asp |date=10 June 2008 }}. Accessed 28 March 2008.</ref> The perfectionist Gilbert spent too much time and money on the commission.<ref name="ODNB" /> Five of the saint figures were only completed with "a greater roughness and pittedness of texture" after his return to Britain in the 1920s.<ref name="roskill"/>

Another 1892 commission which Gilbert struggled with was the ''Memorial Tablet to Edward Robert Bulwer-Lytton, First Earl of Lytton'' (1892–1902). Lady Lytton wished to remember her husband the politician [[Edward Bulwer-Lytton]] with a plaque in the crypt of [[St Paul's Cathedral]]. Having taken on the work, Gilbert never supplied the plaque, despite her frequent visits to his studio. Instead, she was forced to buy the bronze cast at a bankruptcy sale and to ask [[Edwin Lutyens]] (her son-in-law) to make a surrounding mould before it was eventually installed at St Paul's in 1903.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|176}}

===Disgrace===
By 1898, Gilbert was in debt and the number of complaints from clients asking for completed works was increasing. Instead of finishing the tomb for Prince Albert Victor, which only had seven of the twelve saints around it, Gilbert took another royal commission, namely building the mortuary chapel for [[Prince Henry of Battenberg]]. Ultimately, Gilbert was forced to file for bankruptcy in 1901. He sent his family before him to [[Bruges]] in Belgium and stayed behind to pack up his studio, destroying many casts in the process.<ref name="ODNB" />

Edward VII offered Gilbert a studio at Windsor Castle where he could complete the tomb project but Gilbert only compounded his problems by asking the royal family for permission to publish photographs of the work in progress in ''[[The Art Journal]]'' and then proceeding to do so even though he was explicitly asked not to.<ref name="OAO" /> To make matters worse, the photographs depicted the ivory and bronze statues which had been originally attached to the tomb and subsequently sold off by Gilbert in 1899. They had been replaced by the bronze casts which still sit on the tomb, but the king had paid for the originals and was angered, breaking off all communication with Gilbert.<ref name="ODNB" />

By the mid-1900s, Gilbert was in serious problems. In 1904, he had separated from his wife. Dissatisfied clients had spoken to a gossip magazine called ''Truth'', which released two well-circulated critical articles in 1906. The [[Henry Manners, 8th Duke of Rutland|Duke of Rutland]] was driven to complain to the president of the Royal Academy ([[Edward Poynter]]) about an uncompleted order in 1908 and Gilbert was given the choice either to resign or to be expelled from the Academy.<ref name="ODNB" /> Poynter commented "We have all come to the regretful conclusion that he is hopelessly incorrigible".<ref name="Jeffries-Review">{{cite journal |last1=Jeffries |first1=Richard |title=Review of ''Alfred Gilbert'' |journal=Journal of the Royal Society of Arts |date=1986 |volume=134 |issue=5358 |pages=414–415 |jstor=41374150 |issn=0035-9114}}</ref> Gilbert decided to quit, resigning his professorship and also his Royal Victorian Order. Things deteriorated further when he had an affair with a client, Eliza Macloghlin, and she demanded to have the [[funeral urn]] she had commissioned, ''Mr and Mrs Percy Plantagenet Macloghlin'' (1905–1909), also known as ''Mors Janua Vitae''.<ref name="ODNB" /><ref name="OAO" /> Upon not receiving it, she threw stones at the windows of his studio in Bruges and wrote a demented letter to King Edward VII. Her handwriting was similar to Gilbert's and it was believed he had written the screed, making his situation even more dire. When his son Francis went to see Gilbert in 1908, he found him hungry and lacking adequate clothes. In this period, Gilbert completed few works.<ref name="ODNB" /> He was able to finish ''A Dream of Joy during a Sleep of Sorrow'' (1908–1913), a bronze chimney piece commissioned by the Wilson family for their home in Leeds, yet instead of supplying an inset portrait of Mrs Wilson as requested, he included a watercolour painting of his second wife, Stéphanie Quaghebeur.<ref name="OAO" />

===Rehabilitation===
[[File:London - panoramio (24).jpg|thumb|[[Queen Alexandra Memorial]] (detail). The maiden is supported by figures representing Faith, Hope and Charity.|alt=Queen Alexandra Memorial]]
During [[World War I]], Gilbert remained in Bruges.<ref name="ODNB" /> The three illustrations for [[Arthur Conan Doyle]]'s short story "[[His Last Bow (short story)|His Last Bow. The War Service of Sherlock Holmes]]" published in ''[[The Strand Magazine]]'' in 1917 and in 1921 three more for "[[The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone]]".<ref name="Mysterious">{{cite book |last1=Wexler |first1=Bruce |title=The Mysterious World of Sherlock Holmes |date=2020 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-5107-4961-0 |edition=ebook |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F43EDwAAQBAJ}}</ref><ref name="Brief">{{cite book |last1=Cawthorne |first1=Nigel |title=A brief history of Sherlock Holmes |date=2011 |publisher=Hachette UK |isbn=978-1-78033-156-0 |pages=160 |edition=eBook |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IEKeBAAAQBAJ}}</ref> were not, as has been previously believed, by Alfred Gilbert. They were the work of his contemporary, the oil painter, Albert Thomas Gilbert. Alfred married his housekeeper Stéphanie Quaghebeur on 1 March 1918 and they moved to Rome together in 1924.<ref name="ODNB" /> In the early 1920s, Gilbert had been largely forgotten in England and was assumed to have died, since he had fled to Europe decades before. However, he was still receiving a [[civil list pension]] and when the journalist Isabel McAllister took an interest in him, she was able to easily find him.<ref name="Dorment-Memorial">{{cite journal |last1=Dorment |first1=Richard |title=Alfred Gilbert's Memorial to Queen Alexandra |journal=The Burlington Magazine |date=1980 |volume=122 |issue=922 |pages=47–54 |url=http://www.jstor.com/stable/879869|issn=0007-6287}}</ref>

McAllister was a fan, commenting in 1932 "One must be entirely loyal to him, and never admit faults to those who ... are always ready to look out for them".<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|1}}  She decided to write his biography and campaigned for his re-acceptance in English high society. Writing to [[King George V]] and various dignitaries, she promoted Gilbert's talents, arguing it was time for him to finish the tomb of Prince Albert Victor and also that he was the perfect person to take the commission to create a memorial to Queen Alexandra, who had died in 1925. The King was glad to hear news of his old acquaintance and [[Lady Helena Gleichen]] became Gilbert's promoter, offering use of her studio at [[St James Palace]] if the funds could be raised to bring him from Italy.<ref name="Dorment-Memorial" />

Gilbert returned to England on 26 July 1926 and his mental state concerned Helena Gleichen; she said he was "broken with nerves, and agitation".<ref name="Dorment-Memorial" /> Friends rallied around him and Gilbert settled down. The King provided a stipend and Gilbert was permitted to use studios at [[St James's Palace]] and later [[Kensington Palace]]. By March 1928 he had finally finished the five statues which completed the tomb of Prince Albert Victor (George's older brother).<ref name="Dorment-Memorial" /><ref name="ODNB" /> In late 1926 Gilbert had won the commission to make the [[Queen Alexandra Memorial]]. This captured his imagination since he saw the major public artwork as his [[swan song]]. Furthermore, Alexandra had been a firm friend of his, supporting him financially even when he failed to complete the tomb of her eldest son. After he had fled England for the second time, she commissioned a portrait from him in 1903 (it is unknown if it was ever completed). In 1904 she sent him {{GBP|100|1904|long=no|about=yes}}.<ref name="Dorment-Memorial" />

The sculpted fountain of the memorial blended [[art nouveau]] and [[gothic art|gothic]] styles, and was built into the wall of [[Marlborough House]]. It was officially unveiled on 8 June 1932, which was announced as [[Alexandra Rose Day]]. It depicts three figures representing Faith, Hope, and Charity who are helping a maiden move across the stream of life. Gilbert was knighted the day afterwards and was also readmitted into the Royal Academy. His return to favour was complete.<ref name="ODNB" />

==Personal life==
[[File:Alfred Gilbert in his studio.jpg|right|thumb|Gilbert photographed in his Fulham Road studio, circa 1889|alt=Alfred Gilbert in his studio]]
On 3 January 1876, Gilbert eloped to Paris with his first cousin, Alice Jane Gilbert (1847–1916), and they were married the same day. They had five children: George (born 9 May 1876), Mary (born 1877), Francis (born 1879), Alfredo (born 1880) and Charlotte Emily (born 1881).<ref name="ODNB" /> Charlotte was to become a notable [[suffragette]] under the name [[Caprina Fahey]].<ref name="EDP24">{{Cite web|url=https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/call-for-public-s-help-to-piece-together-life-of-norfolk-suffragette-caprina-fahey-1-5262750|title=Call for public's help to piece together life of Norfolk suffragette Caprina Fahey|last=Briscoe|first=Kim|website=Eastern Daily Press|date=2 November 2017|language=en|access-date=12 October 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191003221806/https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/call-for-public-s-help-to-piece-together-life-of-norfolk-suffragette-caprina-fahey-1-5262750|archive-date=3 October 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

Gilbert's wife Alice had a breakdown soon after the official opening of the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain in 1893 and spent time in a [[mental asylum]]. The family left England again in 1901 and settled in [[Bruges]]. The marriage broke down in 1904 and Alice was hospitalised again. She died in 1916.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Gilbert, Alfred|journal=Who's Who|year=1919|page=946|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015047639912;view=1up;seq=988|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191208213805/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015047639912;view=1up;seq=988|archive-date=8 December 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Gilbert remarried in 1918 with his housekeeper Stéphanie Quaghebeur, by which time he had already taken on responsibility for helping to raise her seven children from a previous marriage.<ref name="ODNB" /><ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|286}} They had stopped living together by 1926, with Quaghebeur remaining in Belgium when Gilbert moved back to England again, although he sent her monthly cheques to support the family until his death.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|306–307, 328}} At the end of his life, Gilbert was romantically linked with Georgina Becket Terrell.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|326}}

==Death and legacy==
Gilbert died on 4 November 1934 at Cromwell Nursing Home in London. He had long been sick and refusing to eat.<ref name="Dorment" />{{rp|331}} He was then cremated. At the time of his death, Gilbert was one of the most well-known figures in English society and there were plans to make a film about him.<ref name="ODNB" /> He was then disregarded for decades, until critic [[Richard Dorment]] published a biography of Gilbert in 1985, which was followed by a retrospective at the Royal Academy of Arts in 1986. Gilbert is now regarded as one of the foremost sculptors of the [[Victorian age]].<ref name="ODNB" />

In 2017, a bust of Queen Victoria by Gilbert worth £1.2 million was subject to an export ban, having been sold at [[Sotheby's]] to a museum based in New York. Eventually, the [[Fitzwilliam Museum]] in Cambridge raised the funds to pay £1.01 million to keep the bust in the UK. The work of art was deemed to meet all three of the [[Waverley Criteria]], namely that it was of national artistic importance, it was of outstanding aesthetic value and it was vital for the study of sculpture. The sum was raised through donations and a £267,600 grant from the [[National Heritage Memorial Fund]] (NHMF).<ref name="Export">{{cite news |title=Minister bars the export of Queen's head |url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/royal-family/article/minister-bars-the-export-of-queen-s-head-drkg5xnrm |access-date=16 June 2020 |work=[[The Times]] |date=9 September 2017 |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170909161253/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/minister-bars-the-export-of-queen-s-head-drkg5xnrm |archive-date=9 September 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Fitzwilliam">{{cite news |last1=Capon |first1=Alex |title=Fitzwilliam Museum raises £1m to secure Queen Victoria sculpture |url=https://www.antiquestradegazette.com/news/2018/fitzwilliam-museum-raises-1m-to-secure-queen-victoria-sculpture/ |access-date=16 June 2020 |work=antiquestradegazette.com |date=21 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200616111636/https://www.antiquestradegazette.com/news/2018/fitzwilliam-museum-raises-1m-to-secure-queen-victoria-sculpture/ |archive-date=16 June 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Gallery==
{{Gallery
| title        = 
| align        =
| footer       =
| style        =
| state        =
| height       =
| width        =
| captionstyle =
| File:Alfred Gilbert - Mother Teaching Child - Tate Britain Sep 2010 upper 1 (5140683108).png
 | alt1=Sculpture
 | ''Mother Teaching Child'' (1881)
| File:Alfred Gilbert (1854-1934) - Icarus (1882-4), front left, Tate Britain, Dec 2012 (8560256773).png
 | alt2= Bronze statue
 | ''Icarus'' (1882–84)
| File:Alfred_Gilbert_(1854-1934)_-_The_Enchanted_Chair_(c1885)_(22696372226).png
 | alt3=Destroyed sculpture
 | ''The Enchanted Chair'' ({{circa|1885}})
| File:Art Union Jubilee MET DP-180-150.jpg
 | alt4=Silver coin
 | Silver commemorative coin (1887)
| File:Comedy and Tragedy by Alfred Gilbert 1891.JPG
 | alt5=Statue
 | ''Comedy and Tragedy'' (1891)
| File:Alfred Gilbert 1894 Nina Cust.jpg
 | alt6=Bust
 | Bust of [[Nina Cust]] (1894)
| File:Alfred Gilbert--bust of Francis Petrus Paulus--1906.jpg
 | alt7=Bust
 | Bust of [[Francis Petrus Paulus]] (1906)
| File:His Last Bow 02.jpg
 | alt8=Illustration
 | Illustration for [[Arthur Conan Doyle]]'s "[[His Last Bow (short story)|His Last Bow. The War Service of Sherlock Holmes]]" (1917)
| File:The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone 02.jpg
 | alt9=Illustration
 | Illustration for Arthur Conan Doyle's "[[The Adventure of the Mazarin Stone]]" (1921)
}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Beattie, Susan. ''The New Sculpture.'' New Haven: Yale University Press, 1983.
* Bury, Adrian. ''Shadow of Eros: A Biographical and Critical Study of the Life and Works of Sir Alfred Gilbert.'' Macdonald & Evans, 1954.
* Dorment, Richard, et al. ''Alfred Gilbert: Sculptor and Goldsmith.'' London: Royal Academy of Arts, 1986.
* Edwards, Jason. ''Alfred Gilbert's Aestheticism: Gilbert Amongst Whistler, Pater, Wilde, and Burne-Jones.'' Aldershot: Ashgate, 2006.
* Getsy, David. ''Body Doubles: Sculpture in Britain, 1877–1905.'' New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2004.
* Read, Benedict. ''Victorian Sculpture.'' New Haven: Yale University Press, 1982.

==External links==
* {{commons category-inline}}
*{{cite web |title=Works by Alfred Gilbert on Art UK |url=https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/search/actor:gilbert-alfred-18541934/page/3 |website=artuk.org |access-date=17 June 2020 |language=en}}
* {{cite web |title=Works by Alfred Gilbert at Tate |url=https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/sir-alfred-gilbert-208 |website=Tate |access-date=17 June 2020}}
* {{cite web|publisher=Victoria and Albert Museum|url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/name/gilbert-alfred-sir/A8429/|title=Works by Alfred Gilbert at V&A|access-date=17 June 2020}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Alfred}}
[[Category:1854 births]]
[[Category:1934 deaths]]
[[Category:English male sculptors]]
[[Category:English goldsmiths]]
[[Category:People educated at Mercers' School]]
[[Category:People educated at Aldenham School]]
[[Category:Royal Academicians]]
[[Category:Academic art]]
[[Category:British alumni of the École des Beaux-Arts]]
[[Category:Knights Bachelor]]
[[Category:Members of the Royal Victorian Order]]
[[Category:20th-century British sculptors]]
[[Category:19th-century British sculptors]]
[[Category:19th-century British male artists]]
[[Category:Sculptors from London]]
[[Category:British emigrants to Belgium]]