Person    | Male  Born 4/4/1872  Died 10/7/1953

Gilbert Bayes

Categories: Sculpture

Born 6 Oval Road, Camden Town. Also did the bronze group with clock at the entrance to Selfridges, Oxford Street (1928), the lovely sculptural work on 1 Wigmore Street (1925) as shown at Ornamental Passions and the reliefs at the Fire Brigade HQ. Also see Father Jellicoe for information about some very unusual Bayes work. Died Hospital of St John and St Elizabeth, Marylebone. In the family photo Gilbert is on the right.

Father Basil Jellicoe set up the St Pancras House Improvement Society and decorated the courtyards and gardens with works of art, Doultonware ceramics by Bayes. The nearby British Library has (2013) a small display in the lower level of some of these charming items. Phillip Dawson’s flickr page shows items from the BL display.

A BL information board says “The sculptor Gilbert Bayes was commissioned to create ceramic finials to top the washing-line posts in a number of courtyards. … His main sources of inspiration were folklore, the Bible and medieval romances. Many of his finials symbolised episodes in the lives of saints, after whom buildings on the estates were named. Remarkably the finials survived World War II undamaged but today very few originals remain.”

Many were stolen so the remaining 100 were taken into storage, from where, infuriatingly, they were stolen. Many of the finials in situ now are replicas. Designed for St Pancras, other copies of these figures were made, displayed and were on general sale in the 1930s. So when they turn up for sale it is not possible to claim them back as stolen items.

London Details has a good post on the Sidney Estate, the Jellicoe project where these lovely finials were erected. And Ornamental Passions has some good photos of the ceramic lunettes.

2023: Camden New Journal has an extensive article about the finials, prompted by the recovery of two.

 

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Gilbert Bayes

Commemorated ati

Gilbert Bayes

Gilbert Bayes, 1872 - 1953, sculptor, lived here 1931 - 1953. English Heritage

Read More

This section lists the memorials created by the subject on this page:
Gilbert Bayes

Creations i

Harry Selfridge at Selfridges

The feet of all the customers visiting "this house" have, over the years, sof...

Read More

Joseph Priestley statue

The thinker in a cubby-hole effect is enhanced by being shrouded in netting (...

Read More

Saville Theatre - Holmes

Ornamental Passions thinks this probably represents Tod Slaughter in the role...

Read More

Saville Theatre - Khaki

This shows Ernie Lotinga in the play 'Khaki'.

Read More

Other Subjects

Keith Bowler

Keith Bowler

We cannot find any information about Bowler himself, only that in c.1990-2010, at least, he lived in Wilkes Street Spitalfields and created these unusual pavement plaques. We understand they were c...

Person, Sculpture

22 memorials
Nico Widerberg

Nico Widerberg

Sculptor. Born Oslo, the son of a distinguished painter. A memorial by Widerberg stands in 53 of the municipalities in Norway affected by the 2011 attacks (which mainly took place in a summer camp ...

Person, Sculpture

1 memorial
Thomas Bayliss Huxley-Jones

Thomas Bayliss Huxley-Jones

Born Aberdeen. Winner of the Prix de Rome. Other work in London includes the 1963 Joy of Life group in the Hyde Park fountain, pictured by Ornamental Passions.

Person, Art, Sculpture, Scotland

1 memorial
Jim Mathieson

Jim Mathieson

Sculptor. Born Calcutta India. 1947 his family moved to Scotland. Mathieson is on the left of the photo.

Person, Sculpture, India, Scotland

1 memorial
Thomas J. Price

Thomas J. Price

From Hackney: "Thomas J Price was born in South London. He received his BA in Fine Art Sculpture at Chelsea College of Art (2001-2004) and completed his MA in Sculpture from the Royal College of Ar...

Person, Sculpture

1 memorial