Sir Charles Thomas Wheeler PRA, KCVO, CBE
Born 14 March 1892
Died 22 August 1974
Active: 1907 - 1974
Country of birth and death: England
Sculptor
Born in Church Lane, Codsall, Staffordshire. Made many architectural sculptures in stone and bronze. Studied at Wolverhampton School of Art; Royal College of Art 1912-1917. A.R.A. 1934. R.A. 1940. President of R.B.S. 1944-49, President of R.A. 1956-66. C.B.E. 1948. K.C.V.O. 1958. Died at Woodreed Farmhouse, Mayfield, Sussex.
Commissions include: Bank of England figures and façade 1920s onwards; Jellicoe Memorial and fountain group in Trafalgar Square, London 1948; Earth and Water, Ministry of Defence building in Whitehall, London 1953; Merchant Marine Memorial, Tower Hill, London 1952; Royal Naval figures on Royal Naval war memorials at Chatham, Portsmouth and Plymouth 1952-54.
Exhibitions include: regular Royal Academy exhibitor from 1914; LCC 1948, 57, 60.
Collections include: Tate Gallery; Royal Academy, London
Further reading: S. Crellin, The Sculpture of Charles Wheeler,2012
C. Wheeler, High Relief, Autobiography, 1968.
T. Bodkin, ‘Charles Wheeler C.B.E., R.A.’, in Studio, June 1956, Vol. 151, No. 759.
M. Levy, ‘Academic Humanist’, in Studio, Vol. 165, April 1963, pp. 154-159.
Biography from Whiteley (2001) and Crellin (2004 and 2012))
Wealth at death: £56,245 0s. 0d.
Works
Dates are usually the year a work was exhibited so may differ from date of production.
New entries have been made each time a work was exhibited. Click here for more information.
The Infant Christ
p. 65
A Portrait
1918 (Presumed)
Head of an Angel
1926 (Presumed)
A. W. Bourne, Esq.
1926 (Presumed)
(A portrait of his father-in-law)
The Lady Sarah Stuart
1933 (Circa)
Carol Rosemary
1933
Lawrence of Arabia
1935 (Presumed)
Ariel of the Bank
1937 (Presumed)
South Wind
1937 (Presumed)
Madonna and Child
1938
Mary of Nazareth
1938
The Offspring
1946 (Presumed)
Locations
Address 3 Justice Wall Studio Church Street London | View on map
1918 (Circa) - 1924 (Circa)
Address 32 Gunter Grove Chelsea London | View on map
1925 (Presumed) - 1929 (Presumed)
Address 21 Tregunter Road South Kensington London | View on map
1931 (Circa) - 1949 (Circa)
Address Garden Studio 2a Cathcart Road London | View on map
1950 - 1953
Address 22 Cathcart Road South Kensington London | View on map
1956 (Circa) - 1967 (Circa)
Exhibitions, Meetings, Awards and other Events
Exhibited at Royal Birmingham Society of Artists Spring Exhibition, 1918
'A Portrait '
Exhibited at Royal Society of Artists Birmingham Spring Exhibition, 1926
'A. W. Bourne, Esq.'
Exhibited at Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Autumn Exhibition, 1935
'Lawrence of Arabia'
Exhibited at Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Spring Exhibition, 1937
'Ariel of the Bank'
Exhibited at Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Autumn Exhibition, 1937
'South Wind'
Exhibited at Royal Birmingham Society of Artists Autumn Exhibition, 1945
'The Offspring'
Exhibited at Aberdeen Artists' Society Exhibition of Works of Modern Masters, 1933
Multiple works
Exhibited at The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts (Summer Exhibition), 1768-
1914 - 1970
Exhibited 55 times (36 times up to 1951), up to 1930 showed 1 to 3 works per year, thereafter between 4 and 6.
Exhibited at The Royal Scottish Academy Exhibition, 1826-
1935 - 1967
Exhibited at the annual exhibition 6 times: 1935 (1 work), 1937 (2 works), 1938 (2 works), 1939 (3 works), 1956 (1 work) and 1967 (1 work)
Exhibited at Palace of Arts Empire Exhibition Scotland, 1938
1938
Exhibited at Exhibition of Open Air Sculpture, Battersea Park (London County Council), 1948
1948
Judged Fountain for Sloane Square (Royal Academy of Arts), 1948
1949
Appointed as an assessor of the competition.
Officer for Exhibition of Open Air Sculpture, Battersea Park (London County Council), 1948
1948
Served on the organising committee.
Organized Children in Sculpture (Royal Society of British Sculptors), 1947
Selection committee member of Chantrey Bequest (Chantrey Fund; Royal Academy of Arts), 1875-1948
1935 - 1948
Served on the Recommending Committee in 1935 and 1936, and in 1947 and 1948 (Royal Academy, 'Annual Report, 1935', 1936, p. 29).
Selection committee member of The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts, The One Hundred and Seventy-Second (Summer Exhibition), 1940
9 April 1940 - 20 April 1940
Served on the Selection Committee, and was responsible for the arrangement of sculpture. See Royal Academy, 'Annual Report, 1940' (1941), pp. 26-27.
Selection committee member of The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts, The One Hundred and Seventy-Third (Summer Exhibition), 1941
9 April 1941 - 18 April 1941
Served on the Selection Committee, and was responsible for the arrangement of sculpture. See Royal Academy, 'Annual Report, 1941' (1942), p. 23.
Selection committee member of Herbert Baker Scholarship (Royal Academy of Arts), 1945-
1947
Appointed to a Committee selected to administer the new scholarship fund in 1947.
Selection committee member of The Exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts, The One Hundred and Seventy-Ninth (Summer Exhibition), 1947
7 April 1947 - 14 April 1947
Served on the Selection Committee, and was responsible for the arrangement of sculpture. See Royal Academy, 'Annual Report, 1947' (1948), p. 23.
Speaker at Sculpture on Buildings (Art Workers Guild), 1934
Speaker at Recent British Sculpture (Art Workers Guild), 1946
Speaker at Fountain Design (Art Workers Guild), 1947
Speaker at The Sculptor and the Architect (Art Workers Guild), 1949
Speaker at Talk on Sculpture (Royal Society of British Sculptors), 1946
Institutional and Business Connections
Associate member of Royal Society of British Sculptors
1926 - 1935
Became fellow in 1935 (see separate entry)
Chairwoman/chairman of Chelsea Arts Club
1950 - 1952
Committee member of Tate Gallery
1946 (Circa)
Served on the Board of the Tate Gallery.
Elected ARA Royal Academy of Arts
23 January 1934 - 26 April 1940
Elected RA in 1940.
Elected ARBSA Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
1929 - 1930
First listed in the Society's exhibition catalogues as an Associate member in Spring 1929.
Elected honorary member of The Royal Scottish Academy
1959
Elected PRA Royal Academy of Arts
11 December 1956 - 5 December 1967
Elected PRBSA Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
1946 (Presumed) - 1948
First listed as President in Autumn 1946. No listing for Presidents from Autumn 1940 to Spring 1946. Last listed as President in Spring 1948.
Elected RA Royal Academy of Arts
26 April 1940 - 31 December 1967
Then became Senior RA until his death in 1974. Wheeler's Diploma work was a bronze statuette entitled 'Ariel of the Bank. See Royal Academy, 'Annual Report, 1940', (1941), p. 66.
Elected RBSA Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
1930 - 1950
First listed in the Society's exhibition catalogues as a full Member in Spring 1930. Still listed as Member in Autumn 1950.
Fellow of Royal Society of British Sculptors
February 1935 - 1974
Died in 1974.
Member of council Royal Society of British Sculptors
1938 (Presumed) - 1942
Member of council Royal Academy of Arts
1941 - 1953
Served as a Member of the Council from 1941 to 1942, 1947 to 1948, and from 1952 to 1953. See Royal Academy, 'Annual Report, 1940', (1941), p. 29.
Member of council War Memorials Advisory Committee
1944 (Presumed)
President of Royal Society of British Sculptors
4 April 1945 - 1949
President of Royal Academy of Arts
1956 - 1966
Studied at Wolverhampton Municipal School of Art and Crafts
1907 - 1912
Studied at Royal College of Art (including National Art Training School)
1912 - 1917
Vice-president of Royal Society of British Sculptors
1938 - 1942
Visitor at Royal College of Art (including National Art Training School)
1947 - 1949
Listed as a 'visitor' to the College in the 1947-1948 and 1948-1949 prospectuses.
Visitor at Royal Academy Schools
1948 (Circa) - 1949
Listed as a visitor to the Sculpture School from 1948 to 1949. See Royal Academy, 'Annual Report, 1948', (1949), p. 24.
Personal and Professional Connections
Collaborated with Walter Gilbert
1916 (Presumed)
Gilbert is listed as the designer of 'the obverse of one of the medals issued to commemorate the Naval Victory of Jutland Bank, 31. May 1916. The medal was awarded the Third Prize in the Competition instituted by Sir Arthur J. Evans in connection with the Royal Numismatic Society.' The verso of of the medal was executed by 'C. Wheeler' (presumably Charles Wheeler). See vol. 7, (1923), p. 361.
Colleague of Laurence Arthur Turner
Wheeler spoke warmly of Turner's skills as craftsman on the latter's death
Employed as studio assistant Anthony A. Caro
1937 - 1942
During vacations
Friends with Mary Gwenllian Gibson
Gibson and Wheeler were part of a circle of artists and friends who met in Robert Jackson's Castle Street studio.
Nominated by Philip Connard
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominated by Charles Leonard Hartwell
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominated by George Henry
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominated by William Reid Dick
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominated by William McMillan
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominated by Henry Poole
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominated by Malcolm Osborne
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominated by Alfred Turner
1 November 1927
For RA.
Nominator of Julian Phelps Allan
For membership of the RSBS
Nominator of Winifred Turner
27 April 1934 - March 1941
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], 1934 and 1941, both unsuccessful.
Nominator of James Arthur Woodford
22 April 1934
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA].
Nominator of Alan Lydiat Durst
19 December 1935 - February 1951
Three nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy ARA]. Date of nomination not specified as 'start date' or 'end date': March 1943.
Nominator of Maurice Lambert
11 February 1936 - 29 April 1938
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1936 and 1938.
Nominator of John Rattenbury Skeaping
11 February 1936 - March 1943
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1936 and 1943.
Nominator of E. Roland Bevan
26 April 1937 - January 1945
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1937 and 1945, both unsuccessful.
Nominator of (Arthur) Eric Rowton Gill
22 April 1937
For RA.
Nominator of Leonard Jennings
22 April 1937 - January 1945
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1937 and 1945, both unsuccessful.
Nominator of John Francis Kavanagh
22 April 1937 - February 1952
Three nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], 1937-1952, all unsuccessful. Date of nomination not specified as 'start date' or 'end date': January 1945.
Nominator of William James Bloye
24 April 1938
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Nominator of (Arthur) Barney Seale
12 July 1938 - February 1946
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1938 and 1946, both unsuccessful.
Nominator of Dora Gordine
1938 (Presumed)
For membership of the Royal Society of British Sculptors
Nominator of Wilfrid Edgar Dudeney
1939 (Presumed)
For membership of the Royal Society of British Sculptors
Nominator of Gilbert William Bayes
March 1941
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Nominator of Charles Leighfield Jonah Doman
March 1941
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Nominator of Frank Owen Dobson
March 1941
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA].
Nominator of Leonard Stanford Merrifield
March 1941
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Nominator of Dora Gordine
21 January 1942 - 10 February 1949
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1942 and 1949, both unsuccessful.
Nominator of Thomas Humphrey Paget
October 1942
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Nominator of Percy Brown
1942 (Presumed)
For membership of the Royal Society of British Sculptors
Nominator of Herbert Harry Cawood
1943 (Presumed)
For membership of the Royal Society of British Sculptors
Nominator of E. Roland Bevan
1945
For membership of the Royal Society of British Sculptors
Nominator of Arnold Machin
25 March 1946
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA].
Nominator of Charles William Dyson-Smith
March 1949 - March 1951
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1949 and 1951, both unsuccessful.
Nominator of Karin Margareta Jonzen
21 April 1949
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Nominator of Arthur John Fleischmann
1949
For membership of the Royal Society of British Sculptors
Nominator of Edward Charles N. Folkard
13 June 1950 - March 1965
Two nominations for Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA], in 1950 and 1965, both unsuccessful.
Nominator of Eric Clare Telford Schilsky
21 April 1950
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA].
Nominator of Estcourt James Clack
April 1954
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Nominator of David McFall
April 1954
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA].
Nominator of Loris Rey
March 1957
For Associate of the Royal Academy [ARA]; unsuccessful.
Studied under Robert Jackson Emerson
1910 - 1912
Emerson arrived as second master three years into Wheeler's studies and revolutionised teaching in the art school
Studied under Edouard Lanteri
1912 - 1917
Wheeler also assisted Lanteri in the studio
Wife/husband/spouse to Muriel Wheeler
24 August 1918
Worked with Gerald (Gerolamo) Giudici
According to information submitted by James Butler RA and confirmed by Wheeler's autobiography 'High Relief', p. 126, Gerald Giudici carved a number of sculptures for Charles Wheeler including 'Earth' and 'Water' for the Ministry of Defence in Whitehall (1950-53). Butler was employed by Gerald Giudici to assist on some projects.
Descriptions of Practice
Listed under Sculptors Biographical Dictionary of Medallists, Coin, Gem, and Seal-Engravers, Mint Masters, &c., Ancient and Modern with References to their Works, B.C. 500 - A.D. 1900, Volume VIII, 1930 Biographical Dictionary of Medallists
Listed as a contemporary sculptor living in Chelsea. Forrer notes that the artist exhibited a portrait medallion of Professor John Perry at the Royal Academy, London, in 1916. See vol. 8, (1930), p. 271.
Listed under Sculptors The London Directory, 1930 Post Office/Kelly London Directories
'Chas. Wheeler' p.1354
Sources
Aberdeen Artists' Society. Twenty-second Exhibition of Works of Modern Masters, 1933
November 1933
p. 67 (428)
Annual Report from the Council of The Royal Academy to the General Assembly of Academicians for the Year 1940, 1941 Royal Academy Annual Reports
1941
pp. 27, 29, 61
Annual Report from the Council of The Royal Academy to the General Assembly of Academicians for the Year 1947, 1948 Royal Academy Annual Reports
1948
pp. 17-18, 23
Artists and Bohemians: 100 Years with the Chelsea Arts Club
1992
Directory of sculptors working and exhibiting in Britain in the 1950s, by Gillian Whiteley
2001
pp. 34-5
List of Members: Royal Society of British Sculptors
2008
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
2004
Sarah Crellin, ‘Wheeler, Sir Charles Thomas (1892–1974)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/31824, accessed 8 Jan 2010]
Palace of Arts
Empire Exhibition
Scotland
1938
The Fine Art Section of the Empire Exhibition
1938
Prospectus of the Royal College of Art, 1947-1948 Royal College of Art
1947
Unpaged staff list.
Prospectus, Royal College of Art, 1948-1949 Royal College of Art
1948
Unpaged staff list.
R. J. Emerson FRBS RBSA (1878-1944), 1984
1984
p. 4.
Royal Academy of Arts Nominations for Associateship, 1927-1938
1938
p.141, pp.149-150, p.210, p.213, p.221, pp.225-226, p.234, p.241, p.247, p.250.
Royal Academy of Arts Nominations for Associateship, c.1939-c.1961
1961 (Circa)
p.6, p.13, p.34, p.38, p.50, p.59, p.82, p.86, p.92, p.98, p.107, p.139, p.149, pp.181-182, p.205, p.222, p.232.
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists Autumn Exhibition, 1945
1945
p. 5.
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists Autumn Exhibition, 1950
1950
p. 6.
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists Spring Exhibition, 1918
1918
p. 22.
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Autumn Exhibition, 1935
1935
p. 18.
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Autumn Exhibition, 1937 Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
1937
p. 24.
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Autumn Exhibition, 1946 Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
1946
p. 2.
Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. The Spring Exhibition, 1937 Royal Birmingham Society of Artists
May 1937
p. 23.
Royal Society of Artists Birmingham Spring Exhibition, 1926
1926
p. 27.
Royal Society of Artists Birmingham. The Spring Exhibition, 1929
1929
p. 5.
Royal Society of Artists Birmingham. The Spring Exhibition, 1930
1930
p. 5.
Royal Society of British Sculptors. Annual Report of the Council, for the Year Ending 31 December 1949, to be Presented at the Forty-Sixth Annual General Meeting, 1950
February 1950
p. 3.
Royal Society of British Sculptors. Minutes of Council Meetings No. 1, 1905-1913
19 May 1913
10 January 1905
The fifty-first annual report of the committee of the Art-Workers' Guild, 1935
1935
p.13.
The London Directory, 1930 Post Office/Kelly London Directories
1930
p.1354
The Sculpture of Charles Wheeler
2012
The sixty-fourth annual report of the committee of the Art-Workers' Guild, 1948
1948
p.8.
The sixty-sixth annual report of the committee of the Art-Workers' Guild, 1950
1950
p.9.
The sixty-third annual report of the committee of the Art-Workers' Guild, 1947
1947
p.11.
Citing this record
'Sir Charles Thomas Wheeler PRA, KCVO, CBE', 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=msib2_1216982448, accessed 22 Mar 2023]
