Blind Beggar and his Dog
Blind Beggar and his Dog | |
---|---|
Artist | Elisabeth Frink |
Completion date | 1958 |
Type | Sculpture |
Medium | Bronze |
Subject | The Blind Beggar |
Dimensions | 2.4 m (8 ft) |
Location | Cranbrook Estate, Bethnal Green, London |
51°31′47″N 0°02′42″W / 51.5298°N 0.0449°W | |
Listed Building – Grade II* | |
Official name | Blind Beggar and his dog, Cranbrook Estate |
Designated | 15 April 1998 |
Reference no. | 1031598 |
Blind Beggar and his Dog is a bronze statue of 1958, by the sculptor Elisabeth Frink, based on the famous ballad The Blind Beggar of Bethnal Green. It stands in the enclosed garden of Tate House, a residential development for the elderly on the Cranbrook Estate in the London district of Bethnal Green. It is a Grade II* listed structure.
History
The legend of the blind beggar became popular in
Post-war reconstruction of Bethnal Green, which had suffered severely in the Blitz was led by the architectural team of Skinner Bailey & Lubetkin, the successor to Berthold Lubetkin's Tecton Group. The Cranbrook estate was the last and the largest of the three housing estates they designed.[4] The sculpture of the Blind Beggar was commissioned by Bethnal Green Council in 1957, and was awarded to the then 27 year-old sculptor Elisabeth Frink.[4] It was first sited on Roman Road, from where it can still be seen, but was moved to its intended location in Tate Garden in 1963.[5]
Description
The statue is in bronze, and is 8 feet high.[5] It stands on an "elevated fountain (plinth) of overlapping stone sections".[4] Pevsner describes the statue as "appealingly vulnerable and serious".[4] It was given a Grade II* heritage listing in 1998.[5]
Notes
- ^ "Blind Beggar and His Dog – Hidden London". hidden-london.com.
- ^ Grant, Andy (5 August 2021). "The story of the blind beggar ballad". Romford Recorder. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "At The Blind Beggar In Whitechapel – Spitalfields Life". spitalfieldslife.com.
- ^ a b c d Cherry, O'Brien & Pevsner 2007, p. 576.
- ^ a b c England, Historic. "Blind Beggar and His Dog Cranbrook Estate, Tower Hamlets – 1031598- Historic England". historicengland.org.uk.
Sources
- Cherry, Bridget; O'Brien, Charles; OCLC 983755807.
External links
- Media related to Blind Beggar and His Dog at Wikimedia Commons