John Lawrance
Other names: John Lawrence
Born 1861
Died 7 February 1958
Active: 1880 - 1932
Country of birth and death: England
Sculptor, wood carver, stone carver, marble sculptor, teacher
Born in Datchworth, Hertfordshire and was christened on 12 January 1862. He was the youngest child of William Lawrance (1820-98), who was a successful timber merchant and builder and of Martha Lawrance née Smith. Around 1880 John was apprenticed to Francis Child as a woodcarver and attended modelling classes after the antique at South London Technical School of Art (Lambeth School of Art). Francis Child (c.1834-1919) ran a wood and stone carving business in West Square, Southwark (now Lambeth) employing three workers around 1881.
Sometime before 1890 Lawrance moved to Leeds where he settled and married Mary Scurrah (27 July 1892). Between 1890-4 he studied at Leeds College of Art. He was also working, first as a modeller in clay (around 1891) and then as a marble sculptor about 1901. On several occasions Lawrance showed work in exhibitions in Leeds and there are a number of references to this in the 'Leeds Mercury' c.1895-1900.
From 1905 Lawrance was apprenticed full time as a wood carver at Leeds College of Art and by 1911 was teaching woodcarving for an annual salary of £140 a year. He features in the Art School calendars until 1927 when his post was reallocated into two parts and he presumably retired being aged about 65.
Lawrance worked in a number of media. According to family tradition he specialised in carving cameos and, although only examples with slightly uncertain attribution survive, two works exhibited by him in the exhibition marking the centenary of Leeds College of Art (1846-1946) support this idea. John Lawrance's documented public work includes carving the wood choir screen at Datchworth church which is a memorial to his parents, William and Martha Lawrance. John's siblings also contributed: his oldest brother, William supplied the timber and Frederick, who worked as a builder, erected the screen in the church. At their father's death, John had been granted probate (effects initially valued at £7003 2s. 7d. and resworn in February 1899 as £8560 18s). He died at St James' Hospital, Burmantofts, Leeds.
This record contains information supplied by his great nephew, Brian Knights.
Wealth at death: £6,802 19s. 5d.
Probate date: 11 July 1958
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.
Locations
Address 10 & 11 West Square Lambeth London | View on map
1881 (Circa)
Address 11 Nippet Mount Leeds | View on map
1891 (Circa)
Address 36 Crimbles Street Leeds | View on map
1898 (Circa) - 1901 (Circa)
Address 1 Avenue Crescent Leeds | View on map
1911 (Circa)
Exhibitions, Meetings, Awards and other Events
Exhibited at Leeds City Art Gallery, The Spring Exhibition, 1898
'Frieze for Chimney Piece'
Exhibited at Leeds City Art Gallery, Arts & Crafts Exhibition, 1900
'Frieze'
Exhibited at Leeds City Art Gallery, Yorkshire Artists' Exhibition, 1932
'Owl for Newel Post in Cherry Tree'
Exhibited at Leeds College of Art, 1846-1946 Centenary Exhibition, City Art Gallery, 1946
'Cameo - Hounds in Leash'
Institutional and Business Connections
Student at South London Technical School of Art (also Lambeth School of Art and City and Guilds of London Art School)
1882
Enrolled for six sessions in the Antique Modelling Class, duration of studies unknown
Teacher of woodcarving at Leeds College of Art
1911 - 1926 (Circa)
Began teaching in about 1911 for a salary of £140 per annum. Between 1923 and 1926 he was working as a 'Special Craft Teacher in Wood, Marble and Stone Carving'
Personal and Professional Connections
Apprenticed to Francis Child
1881 (Circa)
May be connected to J. Lawrence
Possibly the same person, but there is insufficient evidence to verify this.
Descriptions of Practice
Occupation given in Census Returns of England and Wales, 1881
'Wood Carver Apprentice' to Francis Child (born c.1834 in Birmingham, Warwickshire), wood carver, two other apprenctices also living here
Occupation given in Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901
'Marble Sculptor' worker
Occupation given in Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911
'Teacher of Craft Works' employed by Leeds Ed[ucation] Com[mittee]
Occupation given in Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891
'Modeller in Clay' employed
Occupation given in West Yorkshire, England, Marriages and Banns, 1813-1921
1892
'Modeller'
Occupation given in England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966
20 April 1898
On his father's death John was granted probate and his occupation was 'sculptor'
Sources
Catalogue of the Arts & Crafts Exhibition 1900
1900
Cat. No. 2, pp. 63, 77
Catalogue of the Leeds College of Art 1846-1946 Centenary Exhibition, 1946
November 1946
Cat. Nos. 105, 106, 107, p. 12
Catalogue of the Spring Exhibition, The City Art Gallery, Leeds 1898
1898
Cat. No. 265, pp. 29, 70
Catalogue of the Yorkshire Artists' Exhibition 1932
1932
Cat. No. 258, p. 11
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1871
2004
RG10 piece 1371 folio 48 page 20
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1881
2004
RG11 piece 530 folio 5 page 4
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1891
2004
RG12 piece 3693 folio 140 page 21
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901
2005
RG13 piece 4229 folio 79 page 11
Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911
2011
RG14PN26974 RG78PN1547 RD500 SD2 ED31 SN373
England & Wales, Death Index: 1916-2007
2007
Name: John Lawrance
Birth Date: abt 1862
Date of Registration: Jan-Feb-Mar 1958
Age at Death: 96
Registration district: Leeds
Inferred County: Yorkshire West Riding
Volume: 2c
Page: 525
England & Wales, FreeBMD Birth Index, 1837-1915
2006
Name: John Lawrance
Registration Year: 1861
Registration Quarter: Oct-Nov-Dec
Registration district: Hertford
Parishes for this Registration District: View Ecclesiastical Parishes associated with this Registration District
Inferred County: Hertfordshire
Volume: 3a
Page: 249
England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966
2010
Name: William Lawrance
Probate Date: 20 Apr 1898
Death Date: 24 Mar 1898
Death Place: Hertfordshire, England
Registry: London (John was the person to whom probate was granted) AND
Name: John Lawrance
Probate Date: 11 Jul 1958
Death Date: 7 Feb 1958
Death Place: Leeds, England
Registry: Wakefield
England, Select Births and Christening Records, 1538-1975
2014
Name: John Laurance
Gender: Male
Baptism Date: 12 Jan 1862
Baptism Place: Datchworth, Hertford, England
Father: William Laurance
Mother: Martha Laurance
FHL Film Number: 1537789
Reference ID: it5,p19
Leeds School of Art, Prospectus, 1923-4
August 1923
pp. 3, 14
Leeds School of Art, Prospectus, 1924-5
August 1924
pp. 3, 14
Leeds School of Art, Prospectus, 1925-6
August 1925
pp. 3, 14
Leeds School of Art, Prospectus, 1926-7
August 1926
pp. 3, 14
West Yorkshire, England, Marriages and Banns, 1813-1921
2011
Name: John Lawrance
Birth Year: abt 1862
Age: 30
Marriage or Bann Date: 27 Jul 1892
Parish: Leeds, St Matthew
Father's Name: William Lawrance
Spouse's Name: Mary Scurrah
Spouse's Father's Name: Samuel Scurrah
Citing this record
'John Lawrance', 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=msib5_1213815016, accessed 01 Jun 2023]
