The Fitzrovia Chapel is situated in Pearson Square, in the centre of the

Fitzroy Place Fitzroy Place is an office, residential and retail estate in Fitzrovia, London. With 289 homes, with interiors designed by Johnson Naylor, and 220,000 sq ft of office space, Fitzroy Place houses a series of shops and restaurants, offices and ...

development, bordered by Mortimer Street, Cleveland Street, Nassau Street and Riding House Street in

Fitzrovia Fitzrovia () is a district of central London, England, near the West End. The eastern part of area is in the London Borough of Camden, and the western in the City of Westminster. It has its roots in the Manor of Tottenham Court, and was urban ...

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

. The chapel was designed by

John Loughborough Pearson John Loughborough Pearson (5 July 1817 – 11 December 1897) was a British Gothic Revival architect renowned for his work on churches and cathedrals. Pearson revived and practised largely the art of vaulting, and acquired in it a proficiency ...

, and was built 1891-92, and though already in use, the interiors weren’t completed until 1929, overseen by his son

Frank Loughborough Pearson Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Cur ...

. The chapel was built in the central courtyard of the former

Middlesex Hospital Middlesex Hospital was a teaching hospital located in the Fitzrovia area of London, England. First opened as the Middlesex Infirmary in 1745 on Windmill Street, it was moved in 1757 to Mortimer Street where it remained until it was finally clos ...

, which was rebuilt in 1929-35 and subsequently demolished in 2008-15. The chapel was retained and it now stands in the Pearson Square development. The chapel is a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

, noted for its opulent Gothic Revival style and opulent

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

interior.

History

The Fitzrovia Chapel was built in 1891-92 within the central courtyard of the

. Between 1929 and 1935, the decaying 18th-century hospital building was gradually demolished and rebuilt around the chapel. After a merger with

University College Hospital University College Hospital (UCH) is a teaching hospital in the Fitzrovia area of the London Borough of Camden, England. The hospital, which was founded as the North London Hospital in 1834, is closely associated with University College Lond ...

, the Middlesex Hospital was completely demolished 2008-15 and replaced with a new residential development. The Grade II* chapel was retained throughout the demolition. Today the chapel stands within Pearson Square, a

privately owned public space Privately owned public space (POPS), or alternatively, privately owned public open spaces (POPOS), are terms used to describe a type of public space that, although privately owned, is legally required to be open to the public under a city's zoni ...

Jones Lang LaSalle Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated (JLL) is a global commercial real estate services company, founded in the United Kingdom with offices in 80 countries. The company also provides investment management services worldwide, including services to insti ...

, which was named after the chapel's architect.

Architecture

The chapel is noted as a fine example of

Gothic Revival architecture Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th cent ...

, designed by John Loughborough Pearson in an Italian Gothic style. The interior of the chapel features a rib vaulted ceiling decorated richly with much use of polychrome marble and

s. The mosaics were completed by Maurice Richard Josey in the 1930s, assisted by his son John L. Josey. The ceiling mosaic work consists of blue stars against a gold background representing the

firmament In biblical cosmology, the firmament is the vast solid dome created by God during his creation of the world to divide the primal sea into upper and lower portions so that the dry land could appear. The concept was adopted into the subsequent ...

. The wall mosaics are lined with green

onyx Onyx primarily refers to the parallel banded variety of chalcedony, a silicate mineral. Agate and onyx are both varieties of layered chalcedony that differ only in the form of the bands: agate has curved bands and onyx has parallel bands. The ...

and a

zigzag A zigzag is a pattern made up of small corners at variable angles, though constant within the zigzag, tracing a path between two parallel lines; it can be described as both jagged and fairly regular. In geometry, this pattern is described as ...

pattern. In the arched

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

area there is a

Cosmatesque Cosmatesque, or Cosmati, is a style of geometric decorative inlay stonework typical of the architecture of Medieval Italy, and especially of Rome and its surroundings. It was used most extensively for the decoration of church floors, but was also u ...

pillar

piscina A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. For Roman Ca ...

. Set into an

ogee An ogee ( ) is the name given to objects, elements, and curves—often seen in architecture and building trades—that have been variously described as serpentine-, extended S-, or sigmoid-shaped. Ogees consist of a "double curve", the combinat ...

arch is an

aumbry An ambry (or ''almery'', ''aumbry''; from the medieval form ''almarium'', cf. Lat. ''armārium'', "a place for keeping tools"; cf. O. Fr. ''aumoire'' and mod. armoire) is a recessed cabinet in the wall of a Christian church for storing sacred vesse ...

adorned with an image of the Pelican in her Piety carved in

white marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphosed ...

which was installed in memory of

Prince Francis of Teck Prince Francis of Teck, (Francis Joseph Leopold Frederick; 9 January 1870 – 22 October 1910) was the younger brother of the British queen Mary of Teck, wife of King George V. Family Francis Joseph Leopold Frederick, known as "Frank", was bo ...

, the brother of Queen Mary, who died in 1910. Set into

roundel A roundel is a circular disc used as a symbol. The term is used in heraldry, but also commonly used to refer to a type of national insignia used on military aircraft, generally circular in shape and usually comprising concentric rings of diff ...

s beneath the arches are sculpted busts of the

Twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

and the Old Testament prophets. At the west end, the organ gallery is surmounted by an arch decorated by a mosaic inscription of words from the Gloria in excelsis Deo. The baptismal font is carved from a solid block of green marble and is adorned with the symbols presenting the Four Evangelists. The inscription, "

Nipson anomemata me monan opsin ''Nipson anomēmata mē monan opsin'' ( grc, Νίψον ἀνομήματα, μὴ μόναν ὄψιν), meaning "Wash the sins, not only the face", or "Wash my transgressions, not only my face", is a Greek palindromeThe romanization is not a p ...

", is a palindrome in

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

that was inscribed on a

holy water font A holy water font or stoup is a vessel containing holy water which is generally placed near the entrance of a church. It is often placed at the base of a crucifix or religious representation. It is used in the Catholic Church, Anglican Churche ...

outside the church of

Hagia Sophia Hagia Sophia ( 'Holy Wisdom'; ; ; ), officially the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque ( tr, Ayasofya-i Kebir Cami-i Şerifi), is a mosque and major cultural and historical site in Istanbul, Turkey. The cathedral was originally built as a Greek Ortho ...

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

in medieval times: Unusually, the chapel is aligned approximately on a North-South axis instead of the more traditional alignment towards

liturgical east Liturgical east and west is a concept in the orientation of churches. It refers to the fact that the end of a church which has the altar, for symbolic religious reasons, is traditionally on the east side of the church (to the right in a diagram) ...

Interior features

File:Fitzrovia Chapel baptistery.jpg, The

baptistery In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptisterium''; Greek , 'bathing-place, baptistery', from , baptízein, 'to baptize') is the separate centrally planned structure surrounding the baptismal ...

File:Arch detail Fitzrovia Chapel London.jpg, A detail from an arch File:Fitzrovia Chapel 2017-09-17-7.jpg, The decorated ceiling File:Fitzrovia Chapel Ceiling.jpg, The ceiling File:Fitzrovia Chapel, aumbry.jpg, The

Notable people commemorated at the Fitzrovia Chapel

Diana Beck memorial plaque at Fitzrovia Chapel

Diana Beck Diana Jean Kinloch Beck (29 June 1900 – 3 March 1956) was an English neurosurgeon and possibly the first female neurosurgeon. She established the neurosurgery service at Middlesex Hospital in London, where she gained a public profile for oper ...

, the first female

neurosurgeon Neurosurgery or neurological surgery, known in common parlance as brain surgery, is the medical specialty concerned with the surgical treatment of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spinal cord and peri ...

. *

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

The Fitzrovia Chapel Foundation

The Fitzrovia Chapel is managed by a charity, the Fitzrovia Chapel Foundation. It is a secular chapel and is a venue for non-religious ceremonies such as weddings, civil partnerships, baby namings and memorials.

Exhibitions and events

The chapel is also used by artists, galleries and art organisations for exhibitions. In May 2017, the Horiuchi Foundation presented a series of photographs at the chapel by Tomohiro Muda. The exhibition was called Icons of Time: Memories of the Tsunami that Struck Japan. Richard Ingleby Gallery hosted an exhibition during Frieze London in October 2017. Artists David Batchelor, Jonathan Owen, Kevin Harman and Peter Liversdge were included in it. In July 2017, Erskine, Hall & Coe presented Claudi Casanovas’s Minvant at the chapel. In 2016, the TJ Boulting gallery hosted Stephanie Quayle's Jenga at the Fitzrovia Chapel and in December 2017, Siân Davey's ''Looking for Alice.'' As part of Frieze London, the Stephen Friedman Gallery has showed works by Yinka Shonibare MBE and Jonathan Baldock at the chapel. In January 2019, photographer Richard Ansett presented his portrait of the artist Grayson Perry at the chapel. It was called Birth and depicted Perry's alter ego, Claire. The Fitzrovia Chapel has been used by recording artists including

Katie Melua Ketevan Katie Melua (; ka, ქეთევან "ქეთი" მელუა, ; born 16 September 1984) is a Georgian and British singer and songwriter. She was born in Kutaisi and raised in Belfast and London. Under the management of com ...

, Allman Brown and the Vickers Bovey Guitar Duo. Fashion brands have used the chapel as a backdrop to shows, shoots and presentations. These have included Phoebe English, Alistair James, Mother of Pearl, Alighieri and Sharon Wauchob.

The Ward

Leading up to

World AIDS Day World AIDS Day, designated on 1 December every year since 1988, is an international day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease. The acquired imm ...

in 2017, the chapel presented its first exhibition. Calle
The Ward
it followed the lives of four young men on the Broderip and Charles Bell wards in London’s former Middlesex Hospital. The Broderip was the first AIDS ward in London and was opened by Diana, Princess of Wales in 1987, this year marking the thirtieth anniversary of its opening. The photographer was

Gideon Mendel Gideon Mendel (born 31 August 1959) is a photographer. His work engages with contemporary social issues of global concern. His intimate style of committed image making, and long-term commitment to projects has earned him acclaim. Mendel has a ...

who chronicled the wards in 1993. The exhibition was featured in The British Journal of Photography, Wallpaper, The Guardian, AnOther Magazine and on BBC News.

Nina Hamnett - 'Everybody was Furious'

The chapel's exhibition in 2019 focused on the Welsh artist (and former resident of Fitzrovia)

Nina Hamnett Nina Hamnett (14 February 1890 – 16 December 1956) was a Welsh artist and writer, and an expert on sailors' chanteys, who became known as the Queen of Bohemia. Early life Hamnett was born in Shirley House, Picton Road in the small c ...

. The exhibition was called Nina Hamnett - 'Everybody was Furious'. It featured little known pieces from Tenby Museum & Art Gallery, the town where the artist was born.

Portraits of NHS Heroes

Artis
Tom Croft
created a virtual exhibition (installed and scanned observing Covid-19 government guidelines) at the Fitzrovia Chapel, showcasing portraits of NHS staff created during the coronavirus crisis. Portraits for NHS Heroes includes work by 15 artists, all members of the Contemporary British Portrait Painters. The tour i
available online

Tell Them I've Gone to Papua New Guinea

Performance artist Leigh Bowery was celebrated during an exhibition in 2022 which included costumes and video. The Charles Atlas film, The Legend of Leigh Bowery, was included in the show.

Lee Miller: Nurses

The exhibition showed less well known images of nurses across Europe taken by photographer

Lee Miller Elizabeth "Lee" Miller, Lady Penrose (April 23, 1907 – July 21, 1977), was an American photographer and photojournalist. She was a fashion model in New York City in the 1920s before going to Paris, where she became a fashion and fine art ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

held in conjunction with the Lee Miller Archives in May and June 2022. The photographs document Nurses in Oxford, on the front in field hospitals in France and German prisoner of war nurses in 1945.

Opening times

The chapel is open most Wednesdays between 11am and 4pm. It is also open for other events and exhibitions.

References

External links

*
Chapel interior of Google Street View
{{Churches in Westminster Chapels in London Fitzrovia Grade II* listed churches in the City of Westminster Gothic Revival church buildings in London Former Church of England church buildings Former churches in the City of Westminster