artist not known
Howard Gallery Relief, 1898
Chapel Walk
stone

Description:
A deeply carved relief is set in a small portico above a small retail outlet on Chapel Walk and often goes unnoticed on this very busy, narrow thoroughfare. The relief used to act as the street sign to the art gallery that was housed above, and the name; 'HOWARD GALLERY' appears as a raised relief across a ribboned banner supported by two groups of trees, in a depiction of a wooded copse. To the left there is a group of Lemon trees, bearing fruits, and to the right are Oak trees with acorns. These are carved in high relief and display an impressive skill, showing great detail in the depiction of all aspects including an abundance of leaves which appear to be tumbling over one another.

Commission:
The Chapel Walk shops housed a high class grocery establishment; 'The Provisions Stores' and, with the Gallery, was the venture of a Mr A.H.Holland who both designed and financed the building, and ran the shop. His son Alwyn Holland was an artist and architect. [1]
The former Gallery comprised of two gallery spaces, each sixty feet in length, with light from above supplied by a lantern roof and was situated above a parade of eight single shops built in the 'English Renaissance Style. The Gallery was named after the Duke of Norfolk (family name Howard), a local dignitary and benefactor and the depiction of this wooded scene is possibly a reference to the local parkland that he had created in a style fashionable during the Victorian period. In 1848 this became one of the first parks in Britain to be opened free to the general public as the Duke became concerned at the level of poverty and over population of the area. It was donated by the Howard family to the people of Sheffield in 1909 and remains today as a public space, known as Norfolk Park.