Dudley Gallery

Originally located in the Egyptian Hall, Piccadilly, London, the building was completed in 1812 and financed by Earl of Dudley to house his valuable collection of pictures during the erection of his own gallery at Dudley House in Park Lane. The room thus gave its name to the Dudley Gallery Art Society, also known as The Old Dudley Art Society, when it was founded in 1861 and used for that society's exhibitions. Its formation has been credited to Walter Severn, (President 1879-93). It was also the venue for the first exhibitions by the New English Art Club. In 1905 the Egyptian Hall was demolished causing The Old Dudley Art Society to relocate to premises in Mill Street, off Conduit Street in London. It then appears to have been referred to as The New Dudley Gallery.

The Society had many well-known members including Louis Burleigh Bruhl who acted as President, Walter S. Stacey as vice-president and at its peak had in excess of 150 members. Innovative in its day, it housed a Photographic Salon holding its first exhibition in 1893. The Dudley Gallery became the Dudley Gallery Art Society in 1883, at which time council members included art critic and writer John Ruskin, Frederick Goodall, W. Quiller Orchardson, Walter Paton, George Fripp, Henry Harper and Walter Severn. In 1905 after the expiry of the Egyptian Hall lease, the building, together with neighbouring properties were demolished and redeveloped.

In the Spring 2003 edition of the Journal of Pre Raphaelite Studies an article by Dennis Lanigan was published entitled 'The Dudley Gallery 1865-1882: The Principal Forum for the Early Aesthetic Movement.'

Number of Artists referenced: 692