Henry Alexander Bowler was born in Kensington, London, on 30 November 1824, the son of Charles and Frances Anne Bowler. Henry was educated at private schools and then later studied at Leigh's Academy and at the Government School of Design, Somerset House, London. In 1847 he exhibited at the Royal Academy for the first time and subsequently exhibited there intermittently until 1871, primarily landscapes. He exhibited at the British Institution from 1847-1860 and occasionally at the Institute of Painters in Water Colours [New Water Colour Society] and the Society of British Artists. In 1851 he was appointed Headmaster of the Stourbridge School of Art. On 4 August 1853 he married Ellen Archer, the daughter of Thomas Archer, J.P. and vicar of Whitchurch, Bucks. The couple subsequently had two sons and one daughter. In 1855 he left Stourbridge to take a post at the Government School of Design, Somerset House, where he had once studied. In 1855 he was made an Official Inspector, National Art Training School, under the Science and Art Department at the South Kensington Museum. In 1876 he was appointed as the Assistant Director of Art. He remained at the Science and Art Department until his retirement in 1891. He designed the figure of Jean Goujon for the mosaic decorations of the south court of the South Kensington Museum, the so-called Kensington Valhalla. In 1862 he was highly involved with the organization of the International Exhibition held in South Kensington. From 1861-1899 he served as the teacher of perspective at the Royal Academy Schools. He died August 6, 1903 in London and was buried at Kensal Green cemetery. — Dennis T. Lanigan
Paintings
Drawings
Bibliography
"Biographical Notes." The Pre-Raphaelites. London: Tate Gallery Publications/Penguin Books, 1984. 27.
Hardie, Martin. "Henry Alexander Bowler." Dictionary of National Biography. Edited by Sidney Lee. Vol. I (2nd supplement). London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1912: 203.
Created 17 July 2024