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section east front & Palladian exterior of south facing aspect. Evolution of the house.
It is speculated that the first Earl consulted his friend, court artist Hans Holbein, [3] to assist with designs for Wilton. Holbein designed an inner porch, which for many later observers represented the fusion between Italian Renaissance and English Gothic of the 16thC. Sadly it was removed in the early 19thC. by the infamous Architect, James Wyatt [4] & stands today at the endof a long garden path. There is little authority however in archives to validate Holbein's activity at Wilton & it should be noted that he died a year after the house had been acquired. Changing style of Garden development.
The Palladian Idea
The building then further elevated by two end towers topped by pyramidal pediment & pavilion roofs. Further development by John Webb in 1649, from the original plans of his uncle & father in law Inigo Jones, being necessary after a fire had damaged some of the former work of the construction of the de Caus building in 1647. Today we notice the true classical Palladian style in the south front. The balustrades at attic level on the roof line, rows of symmetrical windows, triangular pediments over the windows in the north & south towers, portico entrance under balustrade & pediment, pilaster columns above, rusticated basement level as well as the other features formerly mentioned. A symmetrical & flawlessly composed fascade, regarded by some as the finest of its design in England today. Architectural historians had some consternation when Howard Colvin originally discovered de Caus's plan in the library of Worcester College. They had assumed Inigo Jones to be solely responsible for this impressive fascade. The Italian influence of Andrio Palladio (1508-1580) had however, been bought to fruition in England through Jones's work & drawings. If not personally by his own hand at Wilton, then certainly under his influence through the work of de Caus. However, it is evident that English Palladian design was completely different to Italian Renaissance ideas. Although based on the same design features, it does not carry on the repetitive idea of the constantly repeated features in Italian design. Adopting instead principals of isolation and space.
Garden Development
These new ideas caused them to remove the formal features that had previously been the innovative former fashion. Perspective use of evergreens & plantings, shrubbery & carefully placed statuary now created the illusion of natural-ness. Instead of the formal gardens, open aspect lawns & trees were cultivated & planted, moving away from the so called 'sophisticated garden' of a century before.
In 1750 Sir William Chambers was commissioned to replace the old wooden arch on top of the ridge, beyond the River, in view from the south aspect of the house. He replaced it with a new Triumphal Arch, in the Roman style and resited the Equestrian Study of the Roman 2ndC. AD Emperor Marcus Aurelius to surmount the new arch. He also created an eye-catching Casino on the hillside as part of the 'picturesque' scheme. Interestingly Chambers is the architect who in 1760 designed the Royal State Coach with Giovanni Cipriani, which is still in usetoday by the Sovereign on State occasions.
Statues by Nicholas Stone
The Front Hall.As the house is entered by the Front Hall, the inner doorway is flanked on either side by spiral columns with grape vine & acanthus leaf design & further decorated with florets & leaves. They are in the Doric order and stand on raised plinths.They are believed to have been purchased from Cardinal Mazarin[10] & brought to Wilton before 1730 by the 8th Earl whilst on a Grand Tour with the President of the Royal Academy. The columns are of Neapolitan Baroque style & were first seen allegorically in Italy during the Renaissance in Raphael's Tapestry, which he designed for the Vatican in the panel depicting St. Paul preaching at Tarsus. They are also seen in 'Coypels'Judgement of Solomon & in Rubens ceiling painting in the Banqueting House, Whitehall glorifying the reign of James I. In the latter depiction, they are supporting a massive entablature. Called Solomonic columns as originally depicted in Solomon's Temple & frequently used in Architecture, painting & furniture.
The Little Smoking Room.Within this room is a delightful & rare suite of walnut furniture. It consists of a pair of candle stands supported on tripod base & barley twist supports. The champhered twelve-sided top is inlaid in a floral marquetry pattern. It has a central yellow exotic bird, painted Ivory & inlaid wood veneers. These are matched & accompanied by a writing table with similar inlaid marquetry top, frieze drawer below, barley twist supports and a shaped stretcher of the style known as William & Mary. The Table has ball feet. The last item is a matching mirror.
The suite is purported to have been made around 1670, during the reign of Charles II, the Carolean or Late Stuart period. However, the style & method of design & construction suggests a Dutch or Flemish persuasion & consideration can also be given to the Huguenot influence [11] that subsequently accompanied William & Mary to England in 1689.
The Classical Sculptures.The front hall & cloisters effectively display many copies of classical sculptures & busts, many coming from three great collections obtained by the eighth Earl, including acquisitions from Cardinal Mazarin of France. The marble statue of Herakles fighting Triton is inspiring and many marble busts of Roman Emperors & others complement the tasteful displays. They include Hadrian, Antonios,Tiberius & Alexander. The central dominant figure in the hall however, is William Shakespeare, a copy in 1743 by Scheemakers of William Kent's study in Westminster Abbey. It has a verse from Macbeth inscribed on the scroll in Shakespeare's left hand. To the right can be seen the Apollo Belvedere, a copy from the original found in Rome in 1504 & subject of much debate. To the left, is the Venus di Medici, original housed Uffitzi Museum in Florence. The Front Hall The Florence study of the Venus di Medici is of course an attribution to the Greek Goddess Aphrodite & also has been the subject of much speculation by art historians as to its true originality & age. A preference however was surprisingly emanated by the great Victorian John Ruskin in 1840 when he declared "..it is pure and a most elevated incarnation of woman." The copy at Wilton certainly exudes the qualities that Ruskin observed & is true, in its interpretation to the softness of the original in Italy. Its virtues to some observers outshining the Venus de Milo in Paris.
The Large Smoking Room.This room is certainly dominated by the majestic Chippendale [12]Violin bookcase & its two accompanying matching pair of bookcases, which are possibly the most important pieces of furniture within Wilton. In one of the very earliest editions of the BBC's "Going for a Song" on television, Arthur Negus had spotted the pieces and featured them centrally in the programme. Items like this are just about unique & priceless and therefore would be valued very highly, but if they were ever to come to market for imaginary catalogue purposes they may possibly come to be described as follows: THE PROPERTY OF A TITLED GENTLEMAN
An Important & Significant George III, suite of Library Bookcases, attributed to Thomas Chippendale, circa 1750, lately in situ in the Large Smoking Room at Wilton House, near Salisbury, Wiltshire. The first magnificent example of Chippendale's craftsmanship, a three section Mahogany breakfront & glazed bookcase with central scrolled broken swan neck pediment. The top coving with ebony dentil decoration, the stepped sides with pierced fiddle-back galleried top & the corners surmounted by Greek pedestal urn finials, drape decoration. The side astragal glazed panels with hexagonal moulding; whilst the central glazed section is decorated with large oval carved moulding of C scrolls & floral design. This is surmounted by an intricate ribbon, woodwind Instruments & central Violin carving of exquisite detail. Below the flank end glazed sections, the bottom cupboard doors have central inlaid compass point motif. The single central frieze drawer has gadrooned decoration & below a central semi-circular recess. The doorframes, each decorated at the corner angle junction with tiny asterisk inlay are crossbanded in fine Spanish Mahogany. The whole is decorated with applied ebony mouldings & raised on a shaped plinth & platform base. Dimensions: 99in. (251cm.) high; 79in. (199.5cm.) wide; 24.5in. (62.5cm.) deep.
Accompanied by a pair of matching breakfront mahogany bookcases. Swan neck scrolled pediments, central glazed doors & flank side doors with arched glazing. The bases each with four graduated long drawers & compass point inlay, matching the Violin Bookcase. PROVENANCEq Henry Herbert, 17th. Earl of Pembroke, Wilton House, Nr. Salisbury, Wilts. q The Bookcase designs feature in the Thomas Chippendale's publication: q The Gentleman and Cabinet-maker's Director of 1754, 1755 & 1762 q Archive material Trowbridge, Wiltshire & Wilton Estate Management Office. (œ990,000- œ1,200,000) The Colonnade Room.In this room there are several examples of Boulle work. The Six drawer 'William & Mary' style writing table, attributed to Gerreit Jensen the fashionable English maker, is an example of this work and is known as the 'Bureau Mazarin'. It has three drawers each side & a central frieze drawer. The distinguishing feature is the crossed curvilinear pair of two stretchers adjoining the four supports either side of the desk. This design feature alone attributes the piece to one of the 'William & Mary' style.
Boulle was originally delicate marquetry of tortoiseshell inlaid with brass. Thin sheets of the materials were glued then cut together with a fretsaw to compose exactly interlacing patterns. Using arrangements of typically Arabesque or Grotesque ornament. It is termed counter-boulle when brass was inset with the pattern of tortoiseshell. The brass was sometimes engraved & the tortoiseshell laid over foil. Intervening areas were often veneered with ebony & the edges protected with ormolu mounts. This design idea originally was a medieval Italian craft practised & popularised by Andre Charles Boulle (1642-1732). Because of his skill & prolific production his name became synonymous with the method. He was the principal 'Ebeniste' of the Louis XIV style in France. It was more prolifically practised in London from about 1815, by which time its striking appearance had been enhanced by placing tortoiseshell over tinted metal foil or by adding inlays of pewter, mother of pearl or horn stained in bright colour. A subject comparison of Rembrandt & Van Dyck Portraiture.Amongst all the important paintings at Wilton, there is naturally to be found a diversity of subjects & styles from some of the greatest Master Painters of the world. It is possibly interesting to compare & contrast just two in the following locations:
Portrait entitled Rembrandt's MotherIt is believed to have been painted in 1629 and is by the Circle of Rembrandt, not signed or dated, but purchased by the eighth Earl whilst visiting Holland around 1685. Although not conclusively by the master's hand in entirety, artists always had a workshop or studio of accomplished artists & apprentices to assist in the commissions & other works. It is certainly in the style of Rembrandt & although only 23 years of age when executed, it is known that he even had younger apprentices in his charge at this time. Rembrandt's was born in 1606 in Leiden, Holland, and the son of a Miller, a Protestant family of modest income. He is regarded by some as the greatest Dutch Master of the 17thC. His interpretation is unmistakably straightforward & truthful in depicting this real life emotional genre scene. With stillness &
contemplation his mother reads her volume by the illumination of an unseen light source that reflects from the pages & onto her
face. He had an interest in creating deep shadow & light to generate atmosphere & reality. He was also known for his so called
'rough manner' which in some respects again adds to the reality of the study. On an occasion when a prospective purchaser
was inspecting work at his workshops in Amsterdam, he had tugged them away when they peered too closely & he is quoted
as having said " Look from back here, the smell of the paint would bother you."
In comparing Rembrandt's genre depiction at Wilton, you can draw comparison of style & execution of his work from similar studies seen here. He has made use of light & shade and the natural-ness of expression captured in the subject. This of course can be assumed to derive from his search for realism to sell on the open market rather than to patrons who commissioned the artists. Rembrandt was one of the first Dutch artists to do this. The naturalness of the subject is dominant to the idea that will be presented to the viewer. Whatever the opinion of the execution & skill of the artist, the reality of the work is unmistakeably human & which the observer can see in reality, in themselves & in others. The natural emotions are as realistic today as they were when depicted in the everyday life of Rembrandt's subjects in 16thC. Holland. This pragmatism of everyday life is what has attracted Art historians, critics & collectors alike. The study on the left is 'The Scholar' & shows a similarity in the use of light, of realism in the facial expression, as if in that
moment he has been disturbed. The right portrait is 'Lady with Ostrich feather' and shows an unmistakable pragmatic
natural smile.
This commissioned portrait group is attributed to Sir Anthony van Dyck, who was born in Antwerp in 1599, the son of a 'well to do' Catholic Silk Merchant. His formative years of training were spent with the Flemish school of Rubens, but by the age of 21,the was in England at the Court of King James. He, unlike Rembrandt, was to seek patrons who commissioned portraiture in the grand manner. Van Dyck had travelled & studied in Italy & was influenced predominantly by the Venetian style & Titian in particular. He also saw himself as a Historical painter & utilised allegorical attitudes & mythological disguises in his work. He returned to England where he became Court Artist to Charles I in 1632.
For comparative purposes all the above works are group portraiture of the Aristocracy, & prolific Patrons of the Arts who required the medium of painting to display the grandeur of themselves & their families. The sitters are in formulated & composed gestures rather than natural-ness. Particularly in the Wilton work, the false poses are stage managed with allegory being used in the form of symbolic fictional cherubs or putti looking down, figuratively speaking upon 'Gods chosen children'.
Interestingly, the Van Dyck painting is the largest ever recorded by the artist at 17 feet by 11 feet. Alan Bush of Bush & Berry in Bristol restored it in 1987. He not only cleaned it, but also reconstructed the black dress of the seated Duchess from the knees downward, as the detail had been lost. It is understood that at the time of the painting, the Earl & his wife were estranged & whilst he was painted with the family, she was painted in the North of England & later inserted into the work. The Double Cube Room.Architects & Designers.Many of the greatest Architects & Designers of nearly five centuries have been associated with Wilton House & grounds, but it is fascinating that particularly Jones & Kent used features of their designs in other major projects they were undertaking. Holkham took twenty-five years to construct between 1734-1759 & interestingly, although not used at Wilton by de Caus, the grand portico with its tri-angulated pediment supported by six Corinthian columns is the main entrance here. Originally it was seen in his plan of nearly a century before. So is the use of symmetrical windows with pediments over them, all in the Palladian idea of Architecture that swept English Country House designs of the 'second era' in the 18thC. Conclusion.All Rights Reserved. January, 2001. For Acknowledgements Thanks to Scott Anderson, Senior Lecturer, Southampton Institute, for inspiration. [2] King of Wessex AD 871, defeated Vikings, made peace in divided England, literate & devout Christian. [3] (1497-1543) German painter/designer, Erasmus introduced him to English court through Thomas More. Later employed by Henry VIII for numerous work including portraits of prospective brides abroad. [4] Criticised for being disorganised & dashing from place to place, never quite satisfying his clients. Died in a coaching accident in 1813, driving at great speed from one client to another. [5] Leonard Knyff, Dutch painter of English Landscape & published in Britannia Illustrata 1707. [6] Inigo Jones (1573-1652) bought the Classical Architecture of Rome & Italian Renaissance to England & introduced Palladian Architecture. Worked on Queens House from 1616-1633. [7]The work financed by subscribers, the architect Campbell brought in at eleventh hour as draughtsman who could supply the latest Palladian engravings. Title interesting 'borrowed' from Marcus Vitruvius Pollio's De Architectura (Ten Books of Architecture) [8] William Kent, (1685-1748) born Bridlington, Yorkshire & studied in Rome. Brought back to England by Lord Burlington from Italy to assist him in his grand plans. [9] Brown, born Northumberland, worked with Kent &Vanbrugh, Master Gardener at Hampton Court. [10] Powerful Cardinal & a Chief Minister in Louis XIV's France. [11] Protestants & Calvinists predominately persecuted in France from 16thC. Provoked by Louis XIV, who revoked edit of Nantes in 1685. From that time 40,000 emigrated to Britain bringing their skills with them & they perceived safety under the Protestant monarchs William & Mary. [12] Thomas Chippendale (1718-1779) born Otley, Yorkshire, collaborated with Robert Adam & editor ofÿ The Gentleman & Cabinet Maker's Director. Possibly England's finest Furniture designer. Top of Page Back |