Leighton House

Holland Park is part of Kensington, composed principally of tree-lined streets with large Victorian townhouses. West London is the most affluent area in the English capital, and many neighbourhoods here exude a soft and luxurious kind of comfort. This was also the part of London farthest from Germany, which meant that it was least damaged during the Blitz. 

Lord Frederic Leighton was one of the most famous British artists of the Victorian age, quickly reaching international reputation. 

He was known to be both a gifted artist and a charming person, which made him popular in London’s social circles, including the royal family. He also became a figurehead for British art in this period. 

The family’s wealth came from Russia, as his grandfather had been the primary physician to the imperial Russian family in St. Petersburg. 

Leighton trained as an artist at Städelsches Kunstinstitut in Frankfurt, under painting master Edward von Steinle. His first major painting was bought by Queen Victoria in 1855, which helped his career immensely. 

In 1878 he became the President of the Royal Academy of Arts. Little was known about his personal life. 

Just before his death he was ennobled, becoming Lord Leighton, Baron of Stretton, and is the only British artist to have been awarded this honour. 

Leighton House sits on the edge of Holland Park, and was a constant preoccupation of Lord Leighton, absorbing large amounts of his time, money, and effort. 

It combined spaces for living and working, and was regularly featured in the press, considered at the time an embodiment of how an artist should live. 

Even before it was built, Leighton knew that he wanted a purpose-built studio-house. 

He had met the person he wanted to design it already more than a decade before, while travelling in Italy. George Aitchison was specialised in warehouses, dock, and railway architecture, but hadn’t until this time designed a single house. 

His involvement with the Leighton House would however last more than 30 years, as he not only planned the house but also designed its interiors and furniture, and was involved in the continuous expansion of the house. 

Construction began in 1865. The south façade, facing the street, was given the appearance of an Italian palazzo. The north façade overlooked the garden, dominated by a large studio window. Internally, the building was at first relatively modest, consisting of a dining room, drawing room, breakfast room and a staircase hall. 

Upstairs were only two rooms, his painting studio and small bedroom. Only three years later, he began working on a series of extensions, gradually increasing the space of the house. 

Leighton had visited Turkey in 1867, Egypt in 1868 and Syria in 1873. 

During his travels, he collected textiles, pottery and other objects that were displayed at the house. In 1873, he visited Damascus, and this laid the foundations for his collection of tiles that line the wall of the Arab Hall extension. 

The main inspiration for this room was found in the 12th-century Sicilio-Norman palace La Zisa in Palermo. Several British artists were involved in its creation. 

The gold mosaic frieze was made in Venice and shipped in sections.

The reason he had the winter studio installed was the problem of London smog. The smog made it difficult to work, especially in the winter (which was an important period, as submission for the Royal Academy was at the end of March). 

The studio, glazed on two sides and with a glass roof, allowed him to work in sunlight without having to deal with the polluted outside air. 

The last addition was the Silk Room, built on the first floor and designed as a picture gallery. The walls were lined with a green silk, and among the artists were John Singer Sargent, Albert Moore and Lawrence Alma-Tadema. 

Leighton died only a few months after its completion. 

In 1900, his house was opened as a museum. 

Leighton House

London, UK