Thomas Wills

Born 1835 (Circa)
Died 1896 (Circa)

Active: 1851 - 1895

Country of birth and death: England

Sculptor, modeller, moulder

Born in St. Pancras, London. Son of William Wills (born c.1801 in Ashburton, Devon), plasterer. Thomas and his brother, George (born c.1827 in Islington) worked in their father's trade about 1851. Another brother, Frederick (born c.1830 in St Pancras) was a modeller of maps at this date. William John, with whom Thomas went into business, started out as a modeller to a silversmith.

From about 1857 Thomas and William John worked together and exhibited jointly at the Royal Academy until 1884. William John seems to have worked as a solo practitioner on occasion because Graves (1905-6) lists him as exhibiting at the Royal Academy under his own name in 1856, 1867 and 1870. The success of their practice was based on designing and modelling drinking fountains, many for the Metropolitan Free Drinking Fountain Association, and an association with the Coalbrookdale Company, iron manufacturers. The Wills brothers may have studied at the Royal Academy Schools (Noszlopy (2003) p. 273). However, in a review of Thomas and William's figure of 'Temperance' for the Royal Exchange fountain, London, the 'Art Journal' noted: '...they are not sculptors by profession, yet are true artists' (1 May 1861, quoted by Ward-Jackson (2003) p. 285). It is possible that the brothers received some informal training as well as advice from the sculptors, John Bell and William Theed, who were also involved with the Metropolitan Free Drinking Fountain Association.

Thomas and William John lived and worked in the St Pancras area throughout their careers. In the early 1890s they had two 'Lady Sculptors' living at their house in Gower Street together with their sister, Mary (born c.1839), who acted as housekeeper. The women sculptors were a niece, Annie M. Lander, (born c. 1868 in Teignmouth, Devon) and a boarder, Elizabeth Hutchinson (sp?) (born c.1827 in Jamaica, West Indies). These may have been pupils of the Wills brothers. Thomas's death was registered between January and April 1896, the exact date is not known at present and could be the very end of 1895.

There are further details of the brothers' careers in the business entry for Wills Brothers.

Citing this record

'Thomas Wills', Mapping the Practice and Profession of Sculpture in Britain and Ireland 1851-1951, University of Glasgow History of Art and HATII, online database 2011 [http://sculpture.gla.ac.uk/view/person.php?id=ann_1262993537, accessed 05 Jun 2023]