The History of W.A. Chase
The painting, "Jesus and the Five Wise and the Five Foolish Virgins" was painted by William Arthur Chase who was born in Bristol on 17th May 1878. He was educated at the private school of Rev. Anthony Hudson and later attended the City & Guilds School, London with awards of the National Silver and Bronze Medals. and also Regent Street Polytechnic Art School where he won a Silver Medal.
He entered the Civil Service and became an Inland Revenue officer. He returned to Bristol in 1908 at the age of 30. He became well known as a portrait painter and a specialist in flower painting. In the same year he was elected as an Artist Member of Bristol Savages. In 1909 and 1910 he completed sketches included in Tribe's Collection.
He left Bristol to paint in Northern Italy and South America and when he returned to England he settled in Blewbury, near Didcot, Berkshire. He died 29th September 1944 aged sixty-six.
During his lifetime he exhibited at the Royal Academy. Amongst his flower paintings "The Flower Jug" was purchased by Her Majesty Queen Mary.
Other paintings included "A Colour Group of Sweet Peas" and "A Chintz Bunch" which were both purchased by the Queen of Norway. One painting and "The Key Note" (1915) was presented to the Tate Gallery by Mr. Michael Chase
The Rowley Inlaid Wood Panels are considered to be his outstanding work. In 1904 at 38 College Green in Bristol the Cabot Café was opened. There were six panels in the Cabot Room. The first - John Cabot with King Henry VII, the second - the departure of "The Matthew", the next shows the landing at Newfoundland with Cabot planting the flags of Britain and Venice. The fourth - the return of John Cabot to the old port of Bristol. A fifth panel shows him at home with his children, the last panel - a closed door with a troubadour outside singing his achievements. On the next floor The Camelot Room contained six panels illustrating the Life of King Arthur.
Another Bristol building housed paintings by the artist - Trinity Wesleyan Church, Whiteladies Road. Here there were five panels each 10 feet high by 2 feet 7 inches wide. The panels represented five parables, "The Lost Sheep", The Good Samaritan", The Lost of Piece of Silver", "The Prodigal Son", and "The Sower". The paintings were placed in niches above the Communion table.
William Arthur Chase designed stained glass windows, the locations of which have still to be investigated.
He was a follower of the Camden Town artists, who produced art influenced by the Post Impressionists movement.
This research was made possible by Mr. Ron Snook - a current member of Knowle Methodist Church - who is continuing further investigations about Mr. WA Chase.
Update - 2nd May 2005
William Arthur Chase painted the marouflage for Upper Knowle Methodist School Room which was designed by La Trobe, Weston Architects, Bristol in the Arts & Crafts style. The society of that name was formed at the end of the 19th Century. William Morris, an earlier leading figure in the movement based on the ideas of two men. A.W. Pagin, architect, and art critic, John Ruskin.
Was it unsual for eatablished architects to use the same artist to produce feature paintings for interior walls of the buildings they had designed? In the case of La Trobe and Weston, they seem to have used William Arthur Chase for a number of their commissions. The painting in our church dates from 1909.
The third Bristol building was No. 38 College Green, known as the "Cabot Cafe", which narrowly escaped destruction in the air raids of World War 2. This building was designed in the Arts & Crafts style in 1904. The interior wall paintings depicted some major events in the life of John Cabot who departed from the Port of Bristol in 1497. It would seem that later the walls were panelled over in timber with a fireplace in-fill of a beaten copper panel with a maritime theme.
Investigations are continuing into possible existence of a stained glass windows designed by WA Chase, but not in his native Bristol.
Acknowledgement is made to the information source of La Trobe Weston Practice - "Bristol - An Architectural History" by architect Mr Michael Jenner.
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