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result that there were two windows one for hats another for birds. Gradually however (fortunately for Irish naturalists) the birds, assisted by the beasts and fishes, swept their enemies the hats away altogether, and when another change of residence was made to the adjoining premises No 2 Dame Street, the entire front was filled with interesting and attractive specimens so lifelike and natural that their novelty in Dublin attracted the attention of many foot passengers, and a group was always collected on the pavement outside the window. It is unusual for a competition such as I have described to terminate so conclusively in favour of natural science.
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97:, where the family lived over the family business, a hatters and shop. The Williams had been hatters for a number of generations, dating back to an ancestor who settled in Ireland in the 1600s from Glamorganshire who was a felter. In 1860 the family moved to Dublin, living at May 1860 to 19 Bayview Avenue, North Strand, Dublin. The Williams first Dublin hat shop was on
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Brocas gazed at me intently, brushing back with his hand the thick hair on my forehead and remarked, "He has a fine head! Make an artist of him is it?" Then in a tone of withering contempt that I have never forgotten, he added: "Make a sweep of him first." This pronouncement from a well known Dublin
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one could readily perceive that Mr
Williams senior, while proud of his sons' achievements, was most reluctant to permit his own occupation to be interfered with, for Edward was anxious to banish the hats and fill the window with birds. The struggle between the hats and birds was renewed with the
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Mr
Williams has devoted his life to depicting the beauties of Irish scenery of every phase, from the rugged coasts of the West to the quiet rural scenes nearer home. In this he has done the nation service. He has helped stimulate public taste in the appreciation of native scenery. Many who knew
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In 1899, Williams took a lease on a ruined cottage and three acres of land on the edge of
Bleanaskill Bay, Achill Island. Over a period of years, he built a house and laid out a garden. Among his surviving papers is a diary that Williams kept between 1906 and 1913 of his time on Achill island.
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Following his election to the RHA as an associate member in 1884, he held his first solo exhibition at the
Leinster Hall, Molesworth Street. He maintained his solo exhibitions in Dublin, missing few years, until 1926. Outside Ireland, Williams travelled to a number of English towns, including
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Williams turned to a photographer and artist, Forster in
Westmoreland Street, for advice. "His reply was concise and to the point and I never forgot it. Sit down in the first ditch you come to and try and paint what you see!" He remained largely self-taught, attending only the
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In 1866, a fire broke out in the taxidermy workshop which destroyed the family business and killed six residents of the adjoining house. Operating from 2 Dame Street, the business became a success from the 1870s, with private individuals and institutions such as the
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While the majority of his work was of natural landscapes, a smaller part of his work consisted of Dublin. He actively painted buildings and streets which were about to be demolished. Following his solo exhibition in Dublin in 1901, the Irish Times had this to say:
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Williams died on 15 November 1930. He left 35 volumes of papers, including several volumes of memoirs, diaries, exhibition and guest books, financial accounts, and innumerable letters. Two further ornithological diaries are in the possession of the
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nothing of the enchantments of Achill Island have been led to find them from first seeing the Cliffs of
Meenaun or the Valley Strand upon the walls of the Leinster Hall. His devotion to Ireland in his art is worthy of all praise.
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Manchester and
Birmingham and he exhibited for a number of years in Bond Street, London. His work was shown in Switzerland and Canada and in America. At the World Fair in Chicago in 1893 he was represented by
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I had found a part of
Ireland where there was an immense field for the activities of an artist, and that I intended to make it peculiarly my own, and devote myself to making its wonderful scenery known.
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annual exhibition of 1870, and had his first sales at the RHA the following year. He continued to exhibit at the academy every year until his death, exhibiting over 450 paintings with the RHA.
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artist, who my Father considered eminent in his profession, was a finishing stroke and I need hardly remark that my Father seem inclined to throw cold water on my further efforts.
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With the decline in his father's hatting business, Alexander and his brother Edward (1848-1905) started a sideline in taxidermy, founding
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224:, while at the St Louis World Fair of 1904, in association with the Congested District Board, he showed an extensive collection.
334:"Gordon Ledbetter: Privilege and Poverty: The Life and Times of Irish Painter & Naturalist Alexander Williams RHA 1846-1930"
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Williams married Kitty Gray on 4 April 1881 in St Peter's, Aungier Street. She was the daughter of George Gray, vicar choral of
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216:. He also exhibited regularly with the Water Colour Society of Ireland, and contributed pictures to various other societies.
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While he served his apprenticeship as a hatter and then pursued a career in taxidermy, Williams also pursued painting.
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He was commissioned by
Blackie & Son in 1911 to produce paintings used to illustrate a set of four books entitled
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Both the hatters and the taxidermy shops co-existed at 1 Dame Street for a time and began what the ornithologist
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RHA (21 April 1846 – 15 November 1930) was an Irish landscape and marine painter. He was also an ornithologist,
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Privilege and
Poverty, The Life and Times of Irish Painter and Naturalist Alexander Williams RHA (1846-1930)
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Williams left the taxidermy business when he was appointed as an alto at Her Majesty's Chapel Royal,
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both have a number of his sketches. The Lake Hotel in Killarney hold a number of works by him.
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night school for some lessons in drawing and painted in oils and watercolours. He exhibited
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The Silent Companion, An Illustrated History of the Water Colour Society of Ireland
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The following year he was one of the founder members and first secretary of the
621:"Alexander Williams RHA Biography and Works - Ross's Auctioneers & Valuers"
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128:. Their father had learnt basic taxidermy from a Mr. Evatt of Mount Louise,
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on 21 April 1846. His father was William Williams, a hatter. He attended
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Alexander Williams was born at the house of his aunt on The Diamond in
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magazine as "the battle of the hats and birds", remarking that:
451:"Edward Williams. Born 8th May, 1848. Died 15th December, 1905"
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Dictionary of Irish Biography - Cambridge University Press
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a winter scene with birds painted from nature, at the
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560:"Biographies of 19th Century Irish Artists (S-Z)"
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800:People educated at Drogheda Grammar School
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355:Dictionary of Irish Artists 20th Century
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357:, 2nd Edition, 2002. Merlin Publishing.
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377:"Alexander Williams ( - 1930): Artist"
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673:Works by or about Alexander Williams
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381:The Dictionary of Ulster Biography
293:, 2010. Antique Collectors' Club.
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332:Murray, Peter (23 October 2010).
785:20th-century Irish male artists
780:19th-century Irish male artists
449:Barrington, Richard M. (1906).
157:Natural History Museum, Dublin
114:St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
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645:"Pictures of Irish Soeneby".
790:Artists from County Monaghan
795:People from Monaghan (town)
760:20th-century Irish painters
755:19th-century Irish painters
718:Alexander Thom and Son Ltd.
704:"Williams, Alexander"
664:Works by Alexander Williams
304:. Cork: The Collins Press.
274:National Library of Ireland
262:National Gallery of Ireland
73:, and professional singer.
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132:, and he taught his sons.
126:Williams & Son, Dublin
805:Artists from County Louth
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683:"Alexander Williams RHA"
564:www.visual-arts-cork.com
191:Royal Hibernian Academy
87:Drogheda Grammar School
711:Thom's Irish Who's Who
420:Baker, Audrey (2009).
270:Monaghan County Museum
584:Williams, Alexander.
539:Williams, Alexander.
524:Williams, Alexander.
509:Williams, Alexander.
422:"Williams, Alexander"
272:each own a work. The
214:Dublin Sketching Club
159:among their clients.
137:Richard M. Barrington
77:Early life and family
770:Irish ornithologists
455:The Irish Naturalist
298:Ledbetter, Gordon T.
183:Royal Dublin Society
765:Irish male painters
324:(for a review see:
99:Westmoreland Street
89:. He was raised in
689:on 13 October 2013
649:. 21 January 1901.
233:Beautiful Ireland.
67:Alexander Williams
22:Alexander Williams
668:Project Gutenberg
586:Memoirs: Volume 1
541:Memoirs: Volume 1
528:. pp. 97–98.
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511:Memoirs: Volume 1
289:Butler, Patricia
266:Hugh Lane Gallery
139:described in the
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187:Hard Times,
71:taxidermist
739:Categories
728:Wikisource
716:. Dublin:
362:References
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693:5 January
467:2009-2598
320:648100922
120:Taxidermy
475:25522842
300:(2010).
276:and the
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