Palladianism

Britain, Rooms 54c & 54d

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Palladianism is a classical style, fashionable in Britain between 1715 and 1760, based on the designs of the 16th-century Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508 – 80). Palladio had a profound influence on European architecture from the 17th century, reinterpreting the forms and ornament of ancient Roman buildings to create an architecture based on symmetry, proportion and perspective.

Collection Highlights

drawing
Drawing, measured elevation of a rusticated doorway to the Garden near the Great Theatre at Vicenza by Palladio, designed by Sir William Chambers, about 1755, England
capital
Corinthian capital, about 1700, England
plan
Plan du Jardin & Vue des Maisons de Chiswick, by Jean Rocque, 1736, London, England
etching with engraving
The Designs of Inigo Jones and others, plate 38, etching with engraving, designed by William Kent, 1743, London, England
dolls' house
The Forster Baby House, dolls' house, 1720 – 30, London, England
commode
Commode, designed by Henry Flitcroft, made by William Hallett Sr, 1740 – 46, London, England
bracket
Bracket, painted and gilded wood, designed by Richard Boyle or William Kent, about 1730, London, England
mirror
Mirror, with barometer and clock shelf, about 1720, London, England
book
Wansted House, plate from Vitruvius Britannicus; or, The British architect, Vol. 1, by Colen Campbell, 1731, London, England
print
The Designs of Inigo Jones Consisting of Plans and Elevations for Publick [sic] and Private Buildings, plate 72, by William Kent, 1727, London, England
room
(Detail) Ceiling from the drawing room of No. 11, Henrietta Place, London, designed by James Gibbs, about 1727 – 30, London, England
engraving
St Martin's-in-the-Fields, engraving, by William Henry Toms after Robert West, 1738, England
console table
Chiswick table, console table, designed by William Kent, made by John Boson, 1727 – 32, London, England
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Background image: Wansted House, plate from Vitruvius Britannicus; or, The British architect, Vol. 1, by Colen Campbell, 1731, London. Museum no. L.4058-1961. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London