Bristol UK Postcards

Bristol UK Postcards - Victoria Rooms

Victoria Rooms

Victoria Rooms

This photograph has the printed text...

No. 626
C. V. Bark, Clifton

There is more information about Cyrus Voss Bark on my Bristol Photographers page. From information known about Bark, this photograph dates from 1868 or 1869.

Victoria Rooms

Victoria Rooms

This unused postcard has the printed text...

K3321
5059 Style
Valentine's
This is a Real Photograph
Printed in Gt. Britain

Victoria Rooms

Victoria Rooms

This unused postcard has the printed text...

20187
This is a Real Photograph

Victoria Rooms

Victoria Rooms
King Edward VII Memorial

This unused postcard has the printed text...

H. B. & S. Ltd., Bristol
Printed in England

Victoria Rooms, Royal $mpire Society and Royal West of England Academy

Victoria Rooms, Royal Empire Society and Royal West of England Academy

This unused postcard has the printed text...

55564
To Greet You
"Domino Series"
Real Photo
Photographed by E. A. Sweetman & Sons, Ltd., Tunbridge Wells

The Royal Academy, seen on the right of the above postcard, was the first art gallery in Bristol. It was financed by a donation of £2,000 in the 1849 will of Ellen Sharples and a group of artists in Bristol, known as the Bristol Society of Artists, these were mostly landscape painters and many were well known such as William James Müller, Francis Danby, J.B. Pyne and John Syer. In 1844, when the Bristol Academy for the Promotion of Fine Arts was founded, the Bristol Society of Artists was incorporated into it. At this time the President and committee was predominantly its patrons, rather than its artists. In 1913 King George V granted the Academy its Royal title, with the reigning monarch as its Patron, and by 1914 a major extension to the front of the building, including the dome and Walter Crane lunettes, was completed. During World War II the Academy became the temporary home of various organisations including the Bristol Aeroplane Company and the U.S. Army. Immediately after the war ended the Council applied for the release of the galleries but was informed that they would be occupied by the Inland Revenue until further notice. It wasn't until 1950 that the building was returned to its original function after the intervention of the then Prime Minister, Clement Attlee.

The Victoria Rooms opened in May 1842 and quickly became one the the city's premiere cultural centres. Over the years the building has been host to some of the worlds top entertainers and cultural firgures - Charles Dickens gave readings here in 1852. The original building was severely damaged by fire in 1934 but was rebuilt and now belongs to Bristol University.

The King Edward VII Memorial Fountain is a later addition to the exterior of the building. Dated 1912, it was designed by Rickard & Poole. Recently renovated it even incorporates an anemometer to control the fountain's water pressure so that on windy days the pressure is reduced in order that the water does not blow across the adjacent road.

This page created 22nd September 2009, last modified 16th January 2010


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