Henrietta Montalba

Who was Henrietta Montalba?

Henrietta Skerrett Montalba was a British sculptor, born into a renowned family of artists. She studied art at what was to become the Royal College of Art with fellow-student The Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll. The Princess painted a portrait of her which today hangs in the collection of the National Gallery of Canada. She first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1876, and her work was often seen at the Grosvenor Gallery in London. Montalba was rarely separated from her family, residing in later days chiefly at the family home in Venice, Italy. She died in Venice, on September 14, 1893, and was buried near her father in the cemetery of San Michele. One of her sculptures, a bronze titled Boy Catching a Crab, is in collection of The Victoria and Albert Museum.