Sculptor, born in London, the son of a, silversmith. Hardiman won a London County Council Scholarship to the Royal College of Art in 1912, and four years later transferred to the Royal Academy Schools. After a period as an engineering draughtsman in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I, Hardiman was elected a member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors in 1918.

He resumed his studies and in 1920 was awarded the Prix de Rome, spending two years at the British School at Rome.

Hardiman’s best-known public commission is the controversial Earl Haig Memorial situated in Whitehall, London. It caused outrage in some circles as Hardiman did not depict Haigh’s likeness as his widow Lady Haigh had expected. It was not completed until 1937.

More widely admired are his heraldic lions flanking the main entrance to the City Hall, Norwich, a work which more fully represents his style. Hardiman also carved three large stone figures for the council chamber.

Other public commissions include statues at County Hall, Westminster, a memorial fountain at St James's church, Piccadilly, in remembrance of Viscount Southwood and a statue of Cecil Rhodes in Oxford.

Hardiman who was a member of the Chelsea Arts Club was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy in 1936 and a full member in 1944. He was awarded a Fellowship of the Royal British Society of Sculptors in 1938.

Bibliography: Sculpture and the Pursuit of a Modern Ideal in Britain, c. 1880-1930 edited by David J. Getsy. Published by Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2004. ISBN: 0754609960. A kick in the teeth : The equestrian monument to Field Marshal Earl Haig, Commander-in-Chief of the British Armies in France 1915-1918 by Alfred Hardiman by Nicholas Watkins. Published by Henry Moore Institute, Leeds, 2008. ISBN 9781905462179 .

With thanks to artbiogs.co.uk

^{Biography from Liss Llewellyn}

Alfred Frank Hardiman was born 17 Orde Hall Street, Holborn, London, England on 21 May 1891 and was the son of Alfred William Hardiman (1865-1948), a silversmith. He won a London County Council Scholarship to study at the Royal College of Art under Édouard Lantéri (1848-1917) from 1912 to 1916. He then briefly attended the Royal Academy Schools before serving as an engineering draughtsman in the Royal Flying Corps during World War One. Following the war resumed his studies and in 1920 was awarded the Prix de Rome, spending two years at the British School at Rome.

Hardiman was a frequent exhibitor at the Royal Academy in London from 1915 to 1944. He also exhibited at the Royal Society of Painter-Etchers and Engravers, and Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours in London; Royal Glasgow Institute of the Fine Arts; Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool; and at the Royal Scottish Academy in Edinburgh.

He was elected a member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors (RBS) in 1918; an Associate of the Royal Academy (ARA) in 1936; a Fellow of the Royal British Society of Sculptors (FRBS) in 1938; and a Royal Academician (RA) in 1944. He was also a member of the Chelsea Arts Club.

Probably Hardiman’s best-known public commission is his Earl Haig Memorial statue situated in Whitehall, London. It caused controversy in some circles as Hardiman did not depict Haigh’s likeness as his widow Lady Haigh had expected. It was not completed until 1937. More widely admired are his heraldic lions flanking the main entrance to the City Hall, Norwich, a work which more fully represents his style. Hardiman also carved three large stone figures for the council chamber. Other public commissions include statues at County Hall, Westminster, a memorial fountain at St James's church, Piccadilly, in remembrance of Viscount Southwood and a statue of Cecil Rhodes in Oxford.

In 1941 in the Blitz, during World War Two his house and studio at 37A Greville Road, St John's Wood, London were destroyed by aerial bombing.

His address was given as 71 Kelvin Road, Highbury, London in 1915 and 1916; 51 Ferme Park Road, Stroud Green, London in 1917 and 1926; 37a Grenville Road, London in 1928 and 1938; and Farthing Green, Church Lane, Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire in 1941 and 1949. He died on 17 April 1949.