BCD SPECIAL REPORT ON HISTORIC CHURCHES 31st ANNUAL EDITION 39 Redfern, stained glass makers Clayton & Bell, and the blacksmith James Leaver. Street’s Tractarian clients demanded rich ornamentation in even the poorest areas of London, and Street was more than happy to oblige. Many of the churches he designed in the 1860s and 70s were decorated by the same artists and craftspeople. He generally exercised a tight control over the content and form of the detail and decoration, although it has been speculated that Thomas Earp (1824–81) was given free reign when it came to sculpting the panels on one of two monuments designed by Street for Lichfield Cathedral – see https:// victorianweb.org/sculpture/earp/2.html. Earp was one of the most highly skilFor stained glass, Street initially used the same firms as Pugin, including Hardman & Co and William Wailes. However, while Street was still working for George Gilbert Scott, Alfred Bell had started as a pupil in the practice and in 1856 Bell set up in partnership with John Richard Clayton. Their firm, Clayton and Bell, quickly became famous for its stained glass and Street used the firm extensively, both for their stained glass and, as at St Peter’s Bournemouth, for their painting skills. Today most of us are familiar with the architectural forms and decorative details introduced by George Edmund Street, and it is difficult to imagine quite how startlingly original they must have seemed at the time. Although Street was not the first architect to work in the new style of the Gothic Revival, he was involved in its development from the beginning, both in the studio of Scott and as a member of the Ecclesiological Society. Furthermore, when his practice had started to expand in the 1850s, a succession of young, highly talented pupils and assistant architects passed through his studio, including Edmund Sedding, John Dando Sedding and, in 1854, Philip Webb who designed the Red House for William Morris immediately afterwards. Street’s legacy goes far beyond the amazing buildings and furnishings he designed. RECOMMENDED READING George Edmund Street, Geoff Brandwood and editors Peter Howell and Peter Taylor, Historic England with the Victorian Society, 2024 VictorianWeb.org/art/ architecture/street/, Jacqueline Banerjee, Associate Editor JONATHAN TAYLOR is the editor of Historic Churches and director of Cathedral Communications. Left: Detail of the chancel gate by James Lever, with James Redfern’s richly colourful reredos behind are both from 1868. Right: The extraordinary railings at St James the Less, Pimlico (1859–61) were designed by Street and made by James Lever in a style that was perhaps inspired by examples encountered in Barcelona. The design for the font cover (below right) at St James the Less is equally unforgettable.
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