The house and studio of Luke Fildes. Architect: Richard Norman Shaw (1831-1912). 1875-77. 31 (formerly 11) Melbury Road, Holland Park, London W14. The detached, red-brick, Queen Anne style house was designed for the artist on an L-shaped plan, and is Grade II* listed. It has several picturesque features: tall chimneys, a dormer and cupola, as seen, and a roof balustrade of white-painted wood, just visible at the top right. The the white woodwork is so typical of this domestic revival style. Nevertheless, Fildes's house has been deemed "less notable" than the one Shaw designed for Marcus Stone on the other side of the road — although it is hard to judge now, since it has been "considerably altered" (Jones and Woodward 159). It is now called Woodland House (not Woodlands House, as in some sources), and like other houses in the area has since been owned by other celebrities.
Related Material
- Photograph of the house as originally built
- Fildes in his studio
- Marcus Stone's house at 8 Melbury Road
Photograph 2006 and text by Jacqueline Banerjee. The image may be used without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one. [Click on the image to enlarge it, and mouse over the text for links.]
Bibliography
Jones, Edward, and Christopher Woodward. A Guide to the Architecture of London. 1983. London: Seven Dials, 2000.
Woodlands House: Official List Entry. Historic England. Web. 21 March 2026.
Created 15 March 2006
Last modified 22 March 2026