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Edward Pierce (sculptor)

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Edward Pierce with his bust of Milton by Isaac Fuller

Edward Pierce or Pearce (1630–1695) was a 17th century English sculptor and architectural sculptor. He was also an avid collector of books, drawings and plaster figures.

Life

He was the son of Edward Pearce (d. 1658), a painter and stainer, noted for his decorative paintings in Old Somerset House.[1]

He is thought to have trained under Edward Bird working under Christopher Wren on London church interiors. In 1656 he was made a Freeman of The Painters and Stainers Company.[2] In the 1650s he lived at the lower end of Surrey Street in the parish of St Botolph's, Aldgate.[3]

His first wood carvings were for Sir Charles Wolseley, 2nd Baronet at Wolseley Hall, where he was responsible for the dining-room.[1]

The Great Fire of London in 1666 proved a major boost to his career and he went into a long-term working relationship with Christopher Wren - executing the interiors for many of Wren's churches (built to replace the many destroyed churches).[1]

He lived most of his life in a house on Arundel Street, but died on Surrey Street died in March or April of 1695 with his will being granted on 27 April 1695. He is buried only a dozen metres north in the churchyard of St Clement Danes, close to some of his finest interior work.[4]

Recognition

Held in high esteem in his own lifetime an English-owned villa in Rome in 1711 is said to have been decorated by the heads of Palladio, Raphael and Buonarroti on one side and Inigo Jones, Isaac Fuller and Pierce on the other. Many of his drawings are held in the British Museum, Soane Museum and Ashmolean Museum. Some where earlier mis-attributed to William Talman.[5]

He was portrayed at least twice:

Wren churches

Dragons sculpture on the side of the Monument

Pierce worked closely with Wren on many projects, creating interiors for Wren's noble exteriors:

Other known works

Terracotta bust of Oliver Cromwell
The dragon weather vane at St Mary-le-Bow by Pierce
Statue Of Sir Thomas Gresham, Royal Exchange, London

Family

In 1651 he married Anne Smith, a widow, who died in 1695.

References

  1. ^ a b c Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851, p. 296 by Rupert Gunnis
  2. ^ "Edward Pierce | Artist | Royal Academy of Arts". Royalacademy.org.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Edward Pearce (Edward Pierce), d.1695". Speel.me.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  4. ^ "Edward Pierce (1630-1695) - The Seven Dials Trust, Covent Garden, London". Sevendials.com. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
  5. ^ Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851, p. 297 by Rupert Gunnis
  6. ^ "Edward Pearce (circa 1635-1695), Sculptor". Npg.org.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2022.
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