Hampton Wick Artists
brief account by Kelvin Adams

Detail from "Sybil aged 13" by Hampton Wick artist Albert van Hoorn 1919.

Detail from "Motherhood - Babyhood" by Hampton Wick artist Katie Blackmore 1927.

Sybil was Kelvin Adams' mother. Earlier in the twentieth century, Hampton Wick was home to a thriving art group. This was active from about 1900 to 1939. Most of the studios were in Lower Teddington Road. Principal artists were:-

William Spencer Bagdatopoulos

Katie Blackmore, R.B.A.

Lucy Millett

Enoch Ward, R.B.A.

Albert van Hoorn

Between Station Road and the railway bridge several studios may be seen on Lower Teddington Road: The Old Mill, Imperial House and the building now converted to garages at Walnut Tree House. This latter construction was the studio of the illustrator Enoch Ward, and is styled in sympathy with the main building.

Katie Blackmore had studios in the district and also painted at Alassio in Italy. She was a relative of R.D. Blackmore, writer of “Lorna Doone”. Her works range from landscape to figurative. Her agent was Carfax of St James's. At that time, they also handled the work of Gwen John. Miss Blackmore's exhibits included four R.A., ninety-nine R.B.A., seven S.W.A. and thirty-five Carfax. I have several of her works. These include a pastel from her Italian trip but also, and more especially, two works in mixed media on board which are in her own distinctive style. This could best be described by a layman such as myself as “Symbolist”, reminiscent of the earlier European style. The works date from the late 1920's. Katie had several addresses and lived in Hampton Wick at number fifteen Seymour Road.

My grandfather, Albert van Hoorn, arrived around 1910 under the patronage of Lord James Harberton. A social scientist and man of notable talents, his works included music, music hall, portrait-painting, photography and the Crystal Film Co. studio which can still be seen behind the shops in the high street, and which was used by the Master Films production company. He invented the rotary clothes-airer, which was marketed in Australia under the family's Doravan trade name. They ran hairdresser's under that name, in England, later using the modified name Drovana, up to the nineteen-eighties. W.P. Kellino is stated to have used Weir House at Teddington Lock for filming from 1912 onwards. However, some old sources give the address of one of his studios as being in The High Street, suggesting that he may also have filmed in Hampton Wick.

Lucy Millett was a local artist and socialite. Her family lived at "Abbotsford" in Seymour Road. It would appear that her art work has been destroyed by fire but her prints still turn up. She founded the Thames Valley Art Club in 1906. Her studio was at Imperial House.

Enoch Ward was a social-realist, sketching the poor at work and submitting works to magazines such as Pall-Mall. He was also an editor. It is believed that Kingston Museum may hold a quantity of his works in store. He came to Hampton Wick in the early Twenties but died soon after.

At 23 Lower Teddington Rd can be seen a pretty stained-glass window constructed by the Greek artist William Spencer Bagdatopoulos. The house was the original “Gomer”, home of R.D. Blackmore.

I briefly mention a literary connection - R. C. Sherriff, writer of "Journey's End", lived in the white house at the village end of Seymour Road.

R.A.=Royal AcademyR.B.A.=Royal Society Of British Artists S.W.A.=Society Of Women Artists. The R.B.A. was at one time under the patronage of the artist Whistler.

Local silent film studios:- Hepworth, Pavilion, Climax, Regency, Crystal (Master Films), Weir House, Ec-Ko (Will Kellino), Homeland, Phoenix (Folly), Marble Hill, London, Samuelson, Clark Labs, Broadwest.