Adrian Jones (sculptor)

Life

Adrian Jones was born in Ludlow, Shropshire, and studied at the Royal Veterinary College, qualifying as a veterinary surgeon in 1866 . He enrolled in the Army as a veterinary officer in the Royal Horse Artillery the following year and served from 1867 to 1890. During this time he saw service in the Abyssinian Expedition of 1868 before joining the 3rd Hussars in 1869. From 1871 to 1881 he served with the Queen’s Bays in Ireland and was then attached to the 7th Hussars and fought with them in the Anglo-Transvaal war in 1881. In South Africa he was attached to the Inniskilling Dragoons. In 1884 Jones served in Egypt where he selected camels for the Nile Expedition and finally joined the 2nd Life Guards, retiring in 1890 with the rank of captain.

He was already active as an artist by this time, having exhibited at the Royal Academy as early as 1884, giving his address as "The Studio, Chelsea".

On retirement from the Army he set himself up as an artist. His training as a veterinary surgeon gave him a deep knowledge of equine anatomy which he used in his work to great effect.

"Peace descending on the Quadriga of War"

Jones' best-known work is probably the sculpture "Peace descending on the Quadriga of War", which surmounts the Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner, London. This replaced an equestrian statue of the Duke of Wellington which is now at Aldershot. It was created as a memorial for Edward VII, and was placed on public view in 1912. File WORK 20/52 held at the National Archives gives some further background information on the "Quadriga". The period covered by the correspondence in this file opens in August 1890. We learn from these papers that in December 1907 Jones had the model ready for inspection and this was finally accepted in May 1908. There are several letters in the file from both Adrian Jones and A.B. Burton who cast the statue at his Thames Ditton Foundry.

The casting was completed by November 1911 and the complex matter of hoisting the "Quadriga" into position took place in January 1912. In April 1912 the King and Queen drove through the arch and were presented to both Jones and Burton. In October 1913 the "Quadriga" was formally placed in the charge of Office of Works. At the back of the file are some press cuttings, and other miscellaneous papers. Another file held at the National Archives, WORK 20/122 covers the period November 1913 to March 1939 and in the main covers the addition of a tablet noting that the "Quadriga" was a gift of Lord Michelham. This was affixed in 1916. It is recorded that the young boy in Jones' composition for the "Quadriga" who is leading the four horses as they are descended upon by the Angel of Peace was in fact based on Lord Michelham's son. Letters dated February and March 1939 cover the siting of an Air Raid siren on the roof of the Wellington Arch.

The Statue of Prince George, Duke of Cambridge

This statue stands in Whitehall and is another of Jones' magnificent representations of a horse. File WORK 20/58 held in the National Archives gives some background information on this statue covering the period January 1906 to July 1907. The statue was cast by A.B. Burton at his Thames Ditton Foundry and was unveiled on 15 June 1907.

Bronze Statue of Redvers Henry Buller

This statue is located in Exeter, Devon and dates to 1905. The image above is shown courtesy of its author Peter Clarkson

Death and Memorial

Jones died of influenza and bronchitis at his Chelsea home in January 1938 aged 92 and was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium. A memorial plaque to Adrian Jones is to be found at St. Laurence’s Church in Ludlow next to that remembering another famous Ludlow-linked man, the poet A.E.Housman.

Recommended reading

Obituary

Here is his obituary, published in The Times on 25 January 1938.

"CAPTAIN ADRIAN JONES HORSES IN SCULPTURE Captain Adrian Jones, the sculptor, died in London yesterday at the age of 92. He had been ill for several weeks with influenza and bronchitis.

His professional career might be summed up by saying that he designed and executed the biggest piece of sculpture in London, the Peace Quadriga on Decimus Burton's Arch, Constitution Hill, and that he lived longer than any other sculptor of modern times. His own ideals in sculpture are expressed in an article, "A Testament of Beauty", which he contributed to The Times of April 10, 1935, on his ninetieth birthday, when he received the gold medal of the Royal Society of British Sculptors. Speaking of the principles he used in the execution of his work he said : The principles first of all say that nothing human or animal of God's creation should be in any way distorted or made a laughing stock of. Therefore the thing was to do an effigy in a simple pose which would carry with it the appearance of the object, or some other characteristics. I don't want people to think (he added) that I suggest a facsimile of any object that they are producing will represent the object they are seeking. All live things look bigger than dead ones. Secondly, a facsimile work of the model will never fill the eye or the sense of proportion. It has to be increased in different places without disturbing the anatomy to produce the effect of reality. It will be seen that between "distorting" and "increasing" there is room for many differences of opinion, and the plain truth is that between them lies the art, as distinct from the craft, of sculpture. In that art Jones was never very much at home, and his best works were in the nature of facsimiles of the model, slightly amplified. When, as in the Cavalry Memorial at Stanhope Geta, he allowed his imagination to suggest "some other characteristics", the result is not so happy. Jones will be remembered chiefly for two things : his profound knowledge of equine anatomy as affecting form in movement, and power of modelling the same, and his extraordinary command of the mechanical and technical side of his art. A point that is often forgotten is that even a bad piece of large-scale sculpture needs a great deal of knowledge and skill, not to speak of physical strength, to produce, and the Quadriga, though it is rather ragged in silhouette, is far from being a bad piece of sculpture. It owed its origin to a suggestion of King Edward VII as Prince of Wales, and those who had an opportunity to see the castings at Messrs. Burton's before they were assembled must always retain a respectful opinion of the capacities required for such a piece of work. Jones was born at Ludlow, Shropshire, on February 9, 1845, being the fourth son of James Brookholding Jones, and educated at Ludlow Gramar School. Taking up the veterinary profession, he served for 23 years in the Army- in the 3rd Hussars, Queen's Bays, and 2nd Life Guards- and saw active service in Abyssinia (medal), Boer War, 1881, and Nile Expedition (medal and clasp and Khedive's Star). On the advice of artistic friends he turned to painting and sculpture, studying under G. B. Birch, A.R.A. For a good many years he exhibited regularly at the Royal Academy, the Grosvernor Gallery, the Royal Institute, and the Paris Salon. Apart from the Quadriga and the Cavalry Memorial, he was responsible for the Royal Marines' Monument, St. James's Park and the Carabineers' Memorial; and among his other more important works were "Duncan's Horses"- his first success, exhibited in the Royal Academy of 1892, and one of the few things to escape the fire at the Crystal Palace ; the equestrian statue of the Duke of Cambridge, Whitehall ; "Persimmori" at Sandringham ; and General Sir Redvers Buller, V.C., at Exeter. His portrait of Lord Kitchener is at Ipswich, and he also painted an equestrian portrait of Sir David Campbell, Governor of Malta, on his Grand National winner, The Soarer and several works in pure landscape. He was made M.V.O. in 1907. In 1934 Jones was given the diploma of Honorary Associate of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, and he was also an honorary member of the Incorporated Association of Architects and Surveyors. Of military and, in later life, rather rugged appearance, Jones was universally popular, not to say beloved, in art circles in Chelsea, where he lived. He was twice married : in 1870 to Miss E.E. Beckingham, and in 1891 to Miss Emma Wedlake, and had one son. In 1933 Jones published his reminiscences, which gave an interesting account of his military experiences - in the Abyssinian War in particular, where he was one of the first to enter the hut where King Theodore had shot himself with a revolver given to him by Queen Victoria- and of his methods of work, but devoted far too much space to refuting a stupid accusation that he was not the author of one of his works'. Similar accusations are not uncommon in the history of sculpture- Rodin, for example, was accused of exhibiting a cast from the living model-and nobody familiar with sculptural methods, and the necessary delegation of labour in the execution of large works, would think them worth more than a flat denial. The funeral service will be at Chelsea Old Church on Friday at 11.30. The cremation will be at Golders Green" Obituary

Work as a painter

Whilst so well known as a sculptor, Jones was an accomplished painter.