The Angel of Westminster - A collaboration between City & Guilds of London Art School and the House of Lords
A few years ago, the Curator’s Office at the Houses of Parliament approached City & Guilds of London Art
School’s Conservation and Historic Carving Departments with a proposal to conserve and restore the figure
of an angel, once part of the sculptural decoration of Victoria Tower, as a student project. The result has been
an exciting challenge for both students and tutors alike and this exhibition showcases the work undertaken by
those who have been involved in this unique project.
The Maquettes for the Angel of Westminster
Conserving the Stone:
The conservation project on the angel was started in 2007 and consisted of two parts: cleaning and consolidation of the stone. Cleaning was carried out in the Conservation Department by two final year students, Gary Gronnestad and Claire Kelly.
The black layer on the lower part of the shield, in the folds of drapery under the arms and the thicker coating on the drapery above the base is a sulphation crust. It is formed as a result of a chemical reaction between acid rain and limestone. The characteristic black colour of sulphation crusts comes from tiny particles of soot or other dirt becoming embedded in the calcium sulphate that is a part of the stone structure. Burning coal produces particularly high levels of sulphur dioxide and, as a result, limestone buildings
and sculptures that predate the 1956 Clean Air Act are often affected by sulphation crusts.
In 2007, Gary Gronnestad carried out a series of cleaning tests on the Angel to establish the most effective method of cleaning the Angel while retaining the patina of the old stone. He opted to use the Nd:YAG Q-switch laser in the infra-red range (wavelength 1064 nm). The following year work was carried out by Claire Kelly. The cleaning and consolidation of the stone will be completed by conservation students by the end of the current academic year.
Carving of new head, shoulders and wings:
For this part of the project, twelve students in the Historic Carving Department were asked to research works of art of the period, looking at styles, proportions and the particular facial expression used in the depiction of angels. The brief was to work up a design for the missing head and shoulders that would be consistent with the
body of the sculpture. Within these constraints, students were free to design the angel’s face with an expression of their choosing. As a first step, full size models, or maquettes, were made in clay. These were subsequently cast into plaster.
We are pleased to say that the Lord Speaker, Rt Hon Baroness Hayman, has kindly agreed to select a winning model which will then be carved in Cadeby limestone, which provides the closest match to the original stone, before being fixed onto the base for re-display.