Alison Sleigh
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Alison Shepherd (née Sleigh; 8 March 1898 – 1972), was a New Zealand architect practising in England. She was likely the first New Zealand woman to attain membership of the
Royal Institute of British Architects The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...
. She contributed to the design of the
Shakespeare Memorial Theatre The Royal Shakespeare Theatre (RST) (originally called the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre) is a Grade II* listed 1,040+ seat thrust stage theatre owned by the Royal Shakespeare Company dedicated to the English playwright and poet William Shakes ...
in Stratford, and is known especially for her line-drawings in Edward Gunn's ''Regency Houses'' series, and in
John Summerson Sir John Newenham Summerson (25 November 1904 – 10 November 1992) was one of the leading British architectural historians of the 20th century. Early life John Summerson was born at Barnstead, Coniscliffe Road, Darlington. His grandfather wo ...
's book ''Georgian London''.


Biography

Sleigh was born in Dunedin in 1898 but grew up in Christchurch. She was educated at the Canterbury College School of Art, and in 1919 was employed by her teacher
Samuel Hurst Seager Samuel Hurst Seager (26 June 1855 – 5 October 1933) was a notable New Zealand builder, draftsman, architect and town planner. He was born in London, England, in 1855, and as a boy emigrated to Christchurch, New Zealand, with his parents ...
as an articled pupil. Two years later her articles were transferred to Cecil Wood's office when Seager was planning to be overseas. During this time she studied at both Canterbury College Schools of Art and Engineering. The First New Zealand Town-Planning Conference and Exhibition was held in
Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...
in 1919, and Sleigh entered a garden suburb design into competition. She was awarded a bronze medal, and her design was published, using only her surname, in ''New Zealand Building Progress''. Sleigh passed the intermediate examination of the NZIA in 1920, and, probably encouraged by Seager or Wood in April 1921 she moved to London to study at the
Architectural Association School of Architecture The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, commonly referred to as the AA, is the oldest private school of architecture in the UK. The AA hosts exhibitions, lectures, academic conference, symposia and publications. Histo ...
. Women had been admitted there since 1917, and so Sleigh was one of the 'pioneer women students'. She was considered a talented student at the school, and Robert Atkinson, the Director of Education, wrote to Sleigh's father to request that her initial two-year stay be extended to allow her to complete the five year course of study. In 1925, she was awarded an Honourable Mention for a small museum design in RIBA's Tite Prize, and in 1926 she entered a bank head office design for the Soane Medallion. The medallion was not awarded that year but due to the strength of their entries four students, including Sleigh, were exempted from the testimony of study normally required for the RIBA final exam. Sleigh was still required to pass the professional practice exam, which she did in December 1927, and in June of that year was elected
ARIBA The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...
. Sleigh worked for Howard Robertson's firm Easton & Robertson both before and after he graduation. Robertson was Principal at AA. While employed, Sleigh also produced drawings for other architectural practices, and illustrated Edwin Gunn's series ''Regency Houses'' which ran as a supplement to Architect and Building News between 1932 and 1935. Sleigh married architect John Chiene Shepherd, known as Jock, in February 1928. They had worked together with
Elisabeth Scott Elisabeth Whitworth Scott (20 September 1898 – 19 June 1972) was a British architect who designed the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon, England. This was the first important public building in Britain to be designed by a ...
on the winning entry for the design of the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford, and became engaged while doing so. After the win, Scott formed a partnership with Maurice Chesterton and the Shepherds to complete the theatre. Alison Sleigh is believed to have worked specifically on the spiral staircase. Sleigh gave birth to a son in 1934 and soon after returned to work, partnering for a short while with Janet Fletcher, another AA 'pioneer woman student'. Sleigh then worked for Scott, Chesterton & Shepherd from 1936. In 1938 the Shepherds designed Pond House in
Stoke Row Stoke Row is a village and civil parish in the Chiltern Hills, about west of Henley-on-Thames in South Oxfordshire and about north of Reading. The 2011 Census recorded the parish population as 651. History The earliest known surviving recor ...
, Henley-on-Thames for themselves. During this time the firm worked on the Wharrie Cabman's Shelter, the Fawcett Building at
Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...
in Cambridge, and two infant schools. During the Second World War, Jock Shepherd served in the army, and Sleigh took in five evacuee children, with the support of her nanny and a cook. During this period she drew the illustrations for John Summerson's ''Georgian London'', published in 1945. From 1943 to 1945 she also worked for the
National Buildings Record The Historic England Archive is the public archive of Historic England, located in The Engine House on Fire Fly Avenue in Swindon, formerly part of the Swindon Works of the Great Western Railway. It is a public archive of architectural and arc ...
(NBR), of which Summerson was the deputy director. The NBR listed and recorded heritage buildings that were under threat of destruction or demolition, and Sleigh's work included measuring, drawing, and photographing the buildings. Jock joined Alison in the work when he returned after the war, and both continued until their retirement in 1957. Sleigh died in England in 1972, never having returned to New Zealand.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sleigh, Alison 21st-century New Zealand architects 20th-century New Zealand architects People from Dunedin University of Canterbury alumni New Zealand women architects 1898 births 1972 deaths Associates of the Royal Institute of British Architects British women architects Architects from Dunedin