Hospitalfield House
Encyclopedia
Hospitalfield House is an arts centre and historic house in Arbroath
, Angus
, Scotland
regarded as "one of the finest country houses in Scotland". It is believed to be "Scotland's first school of fine art" and the first art college in Britain. A range of prominent Scottish artists have worked there, including Joan Eardley
, Peter Howson
, Will Maclean, Robert Colquhoun
, Robert MacBryde
, William Gear
, Alasdair Gray
, Wendy McMurdo
and Callum Innes
.
as a leprosy and plague hospice called the "Hospital of St John the Baptist". It was purchased and extended by James Fraser in 1665. Walter Scott
stayed in the house in 1803 and 1809 and used it as his model for 'Monksbarns' in his novel The Antiquary
(1816).
and was once president of the British Academy of Art in Rome. In Arbroath he completed a series of paintings for an edition of Scott's The Antiquary. After acquiring the Hospitalfield estate through marriage he embarked on a substantial remodelling programme. His scheme used mainly local craftsmen and converted an eighteenth-century barn into a gallery, added a five-storey bartizan
and a large wing. He had a keen interest in the arts and set up the Patrick Allan-Fraser of Hospitalfield Trust to support young artists. The building was bequeathed "for the promotion of Education in the Arts" on the death of Allan-Fraser in 1890, having no heirs to his estate.
.
building is in the gothic style and draws on medieval domestic architecture. Allan-Fraser was heavily indebted to the Arts and Crafts Movement
. This is evident in the design of the building which features crenallated parapets, Crow-stepped gable
s and Oriel Window
s. In 1901 a new studio block was added with north-west facing windows. A smaller room contains a skylight and there are yards for outdoor sculpture.
Allan-Fraser wanted to create an inspiring space for young artists and the interior displays a large collection of Victorian sculpture, paintings, and wood-carvings which are of "international importance". The interior design features include romanesque
dado
arcading
and a Hammerbeam roof
. The main public rooms in the house are the dining room, picture gallery and adjoining cedar room and anteroom. Two 17th century tapestries were obtained in the 1870s for the first floor drawing room to reflect a passage in The Antiquary. Chandeliers inside the house were obtained from the Guildhall in Birmingham. The gallery contains armorial references to the Fraser family who owned the estate from 1665 and the Parrott family of Hawkesbury Hall who joined the Fraser estate in the 19th century.
Allan-Fraser commissioned self-portraits from members of The Clique
, an art group he had known as a young man. These included John Phillip
Augustus Egg
, William Powell Frith
, Henry O'Neil and Edward Matthew Ward
. 'The Trial of Effie Deans' (1840) by Robert Scott Lauder
hangs on the main landing. A painting of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
by James Peter Quinn
hung in Hospitalfield's gallery during the Second World War. The library contains books dating from 16th to 19th centuries.
Arbroath
Arbroath or Aberbrothock is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the council area of Angus in Scotland, and has a population of 22,785...
, Angus
Angus
Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
regarded as "one of the finest country houses in Scotland". It is believed to be "Scotland's first school of fine art" and the first art college in Britain. A range of prominent Scottish artists have worked there, including Joan Eardley
Joan Eardley
Joan Eardley was a British artist.Joan Kathleen Harding Eardley was born in Warnham, Sussex, England where her parents were dairy farmers. Her mother, Irene Morrison, was Scottish. Joan had a sister, Patricia, born in 1922...
, Peter Howson
Peter Howson
Peter Howson OBE is a Scottish painter. He was an official war artist in the 1993 Bosnian Civil War.Peter Howson was born in London and moved with his family to Prestwick, Ayrshire, when Howson was aged four...
, Will Maclean, Robert Colquhoun
Robert Colquhoun
Robert Colquhoun was a Scottish painter, printmaker and theatre set designer.Colquhoun was born in Kilmarnock and was educated at Kilmarnock Academy...
, Robert MacBryde
Robert MacBryde
Robert MacBryde was a Scottish still-life and figure painter and a theatre set designer.MacBryde was born in Maybole and worked in a factory for 5 years after leaving school. He studied art at Glasgow School of Art from 1932 to 1937...
, William Gear
William Gear
William Gear was a painter, born on 2 August 1915 in Methil in the south-east of Fife, Scotland. Born into a mining family, he studied at Edinburgh College of Art before travelling to Paris to study with Fernand Léger....
, Alasdair Gray
Alasdair Gray
Alasdair Gray is a Scottish writer and artist. His most acclaimed work is his first novel Lanark, published in 1981 and written over a period of almost 30 years...
, Wendy McMurdo
Wendy McMurdo
Wendy McMurdo is a British artist who specialises in photography and digital media. She attended Edinburgh College of Art, Goldsmiths, University of London and Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York where she first became interested in photography.-Career:Her work centres around the relationship...
and Callum Innes
Callum Innes
Callum Innes is a Scottish abstract painter and former Turner Prize nominee.-Life and work:Callum Innes was born in Edinburgh. He studied at Gray's School of Art and graduated from Edinburgh College of Art in 1985....
.
Early History
Hospitalfield House was originally founded in the 1200s by Tironesian monks from nearby Arbroath AbbeyArbroath Abbey
Arbroath Abbey, in the Scottish town of Arbroath, was founded in 1178 by King William the Lion for a group of Tironensian Benedictine monks from Kelso Abbey. It was consecrated in 1197 with a dedication to the deceased Saint Thomas Becket, whom the king had met at the English court...
as a leprosy and plague hospice called the "Hospital of St John the Baptist". It was purchased and extended by James Fraser in 1665. Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
stayed in the house in 1803 and 1809 and used it as his model for 'Monksbarns' in his novel The Antiquary
The Antiquary
The Antiquary is a novel by Sir Walter Scott about several characters including an antiquary: an amateur historian, archaeologist and collector of items of dubious antiquity. Although he is the eponymous character, he is not necessarily the hero, as many of the characters around him undergo far...
(1816).
Patrick Allan-Fraser (1813-90)
In the mid nineteenth century Hospitalfield House was expanded by Patrick Allan-Fraser, a patron of the arts. Allan-Fraser, the son of an Arbroath weaving merchant, studied art in EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and was once president of the British Academy of Art in Rome. In Arbroath he completed a series of paintings for an edition of Scott's The Antiquary. After acquiring the Hospitalfield estate through marriage he embarked on a substantial remodelling programme. His scheme used mainly local craftsmen and converted an eighteenth-century barn into a gallery, added a five-storey bartizan
Bartizan
A bartizan or guerite is an overhanging, wall-mounted turret projecting from the walls of medieval fortifications from the early 14th century up to the 16th century. They protect a warder and enable him to see around him...
and a large wing. He had a keen interest in the arts and set up the Patrick Allan-Fraser of Hospitalfield Trust to support young artists. The building was bequeathed "for the promotion of Education in the Arts" on the death of Allan-Fraser in 1890, having no heirs to his estate.
Present Day
The house is now a residential art centre, music and conference venue. It is not usually open to the public. In 2008 it was used as a film location for the docu-drama "Children of the Dead End" starring Stephen ReaStephen Rea
Stephen Rea is an Irish film and stage actor. Rea has appeared in high profile films such as V for Vendetta, Michael Collins, Interview with the Vampire and Breakfast on Pluto...
.
Exterior
The red sandstoneRed sandstone
Red sandstone may refer to:*Sandstone appearing red due to the inclusion of iron oxides *Old Red Sandstone*New Red Sandstone*Ardjachie Stone*Aizkorri , Basque Mountains massif...
building is in the gothic style and draws on medieval domestic architecture. Allan-Fraser was heavily indebted to the Arts and Crafts Movement
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...
. This is evident in the design of the building which features crenallated parapets, Crow-stepped gable
Crow-stepped gable
A Stepped gable, Crow-stepped gable, or Corbie step is a stair-step type of design at the top of the triangular gable-end of a building...
s and Oriel Window
Oriel window
Oriel windows are a form of bay window commonly found in Gothic architecture, which project from the main wall of the building but do not reach to the ground. Corbels or brackets are often used to support this kind of window. They are seen in combination with the Tudor arch. This type of window was...
s. In 1901 a new studio block was added with north-west facing windows. A smaller room contains a skylight and there are yards for outdoor sculpture.
Interior
Romanesque
Romanesque may refer to:*Romanesque art, the art of Western Europe from approximately AD 1000 to the 13th century or later*Romanesque architecture, architecture of Europe which emerged in the late 10th century and lasted to the 13th century...
dado
Dado
Dado may refer to:* Dado , an architectural term* Dado , a woodworking joint* Dado , a Yugoslav-born painter* DADO, stage name of Canadian street theater performer* Dado, nickname of Israeli Lt. Gen...
arcading
Arcade (architecture)
An arcade is a succession of arches, each counterthrusting the next, supported by columns or piers or a covered walk enclosed by a line of such arches on one or both sides. In warmer or wet climates, exterior arcades provide shelter for pedestrians....
and a Hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof
Hammerbeam roof, in architecture, is the name given to an open timber roof, typical of English Gothic architecture, using short beams projecting from the wall.- Design :...
. The main public rooms in the house are the dining room, picture gallery and adjoining cedar room and anteroom. Two 17th century tapestries were obtained in the 1870s for the first floor drawing room to reflect a passage in The Antiquary. Chandeliers inside the house were obtained from the Guildhall in Birmingham. The gallery contains armorial references to the Fraser family who owned the estate from 1665 and the Parrott family of Hawkesbury Hall who joined the Fraser estate in the 19th century.
Allan-Fraser commissioned self-portraits from members of The Clique
The Clique
The Clique was a group of English artists formed by Richard Dadd in the late 1830s. Other members were Augustus Egg, Alfred Elmore, William Powell Frith, Henry Nelson O'Neil, John Phillip and Edward Matthew Ward....
, an art group he had known as a young man. These included John Phillip
John Phillip
John Phillip was a Victorian era painter best known for his portrayals of Spanish life. He was nicknamed "Spanish Phillip"....
Augustus Egg
Augustus Egg
Augustus Leopold Egg 2 May 1816 in London, England – 26 March 1863) was a Victorian artist best known for his modern triptych Past and Present , which depicts the breakup of a middle-class Victorian family.-Biography:...
, William Powell Frith
William Powell Frith
William Powell Frith , was an English painter specialising in genre subjects and panoramic narrative works of life in the Victorian era. He was elected to the Royal Academy in 1852...
, Henry O'Neil and Edward Matthew Ward
Edward Matthew Ward
Edward Matthew Ward was an English Victorian narrative painter best known for his murals in the Palace of Westminster depicting episodes in British history from the English Civil War to the Glorious Revolution.-Early career:...
. 'The Trial of Effie Deans' (1840) by Robert Scott Lauder
Robert Scott Lauder
Robert Scott Lauder was a Scottish mid-Victorian artist who described himself as a "historical painter". He was one of the original members of the Royal Scottish Academy.-Life and work:...
hangs on the main landing. A painting of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II...
by James Peter Quinn
James Peter Quinn
James Peter Quinn was an Australian portrait painter born in MelbourneHe studied part-time under Frederick McCubbin 1887–1999 then at the Melbourne National Gallery School under George Folingsby and Bernard Hall 1889–1893, then in Paris at the Académie Julian and the Ecole des Beaux-Arts from...
hung in Hospitalfield's gallery during the Second World War. The library contains books dating from 16th to 19th centuries.