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Information about Robert Adam

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Robert Adam
Robert Adam (3 July 1728 – 3 March 1792) was a Scottish neoclassical architect, interior designer and furniture designer.

Biography

Adam was born in Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland, the second son of William Adam (1689–1748), a stonemason and architect who was Scotland's foremost designer of country houses at the time. His younger brother and business partner James Adam was also an architect of some note, as was his older brother John Adam, although both were overshadowed by Robert.

He is considered by many to be the greatest architect of the late 18th century, and a leader of the neo-classical revival in England and Scotland from around 1760 until his death. Sir William Chambers was the leading British official architect of the era, but Adam received many important commissions from private clients and had a more lasting stylistic influence, termed the Adam style.

Training

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Kedleston Hall. The South front by Robert Adam, based on the Arch of Constantine in Rome


Robert studied at the Royal High School, Edinburgh, then entered the University of Edinburgh in 1743 only for his studies to be interrupted by illness and the Jacobite Rising of 1745. In 1746, he joined his elder brother, John Adam, as an assistant to his father, and after their father's death in 1748, the two brothers became partners in the family business, now known as 'Adam Brothers'.

Their first major commission was the decoration of the grand state apartments on the first floor at Hopetoun House, near South Queensferry west of Edinburgh, followed by projects at Fort George, Dumfries House and Inveraray. In 1754, Robert Adam set off for Europe on the Grand Tour of France and Italy, studying classical architecture and honing his drawing skills (his art tutors included French architect Charles-Louis Clérisseau and architect and archaeologist Giovanni Battista Piranesi). During this journey, he studied intensively the ruins of Diocletian's palace at Split in Dalmatia, later publishing The Ruins of the Palace of Diocletian in 1764.

Business

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Mistley Towers, Essex


He returned to Great Britain in 1758 and set up in business in London with his brothers James and William, focused on designing complete schemes for the decoration and furnishing of houses. Palladian design was popular, and Robert designed a number of country houses in this style [1], but Robert evolved a new, more flexible style incorporating elements of classic Roman design alongside influences from Greek, Byzantine and Baroque styles.[2] The Adam brothers' success can also be attributed to a desire to design everything down to the smallest detail, ensuring a sense of unity in their designs.

Projects

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Osterley Park, London
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Details for Derby House in Grosvenor Square, an example of the Adam Brothers' decorative designs.

Public life

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One of Adam's masterpieces: Pulteney Bridge, Bath
Adam was elected a member of the Royal Society of Arts in 1758 and of the Society of Antiquaries in 1761, the same year he was appointed Architect of the King’s Works (jointly with Sir William Chambers). His younger brother James succeeded him in this post when he relinquished the role in 1768 in order to devote more time to his elected office as Member of Parliament for Kinross.

Robert Adam died suddenly at his home, 11 Albermarle Street, London, after a blood vessel in his stomach burst. He was 64. He was buried in Westminster Abbey. He left nearly 9,000 drawings, most of which were purchased by the architect John Soane and are now at the Soane Museum in London.

Further reading

  • During their lifetime Robert and James Adam published two volumes of their designs, Works in Architecture of Robert and James Adam (in 1773-78 and 1779; a third volume was published posthumously, in 1822).
  • A comprehensive account of Robert’s furniture work is given in The Furniture of Robert Adam by Eileen Harris (published by Alec Tiranti, London, 1963) ISBN 0-85458-929-5. Harris later published The Genius of Robert Adam: His Interiors (2001) ISBN 0-300-08129-4
  • John Fleming, Robert Adam and his Circle (1962) ISBN 0-7195-0000-1
  • Doreen Yarwood, Robert Adam (1970) ISBN 0-460-03824-9 and ISBN 0-460-02130-3 (1973 paperback)
  • Damie Stillman, The Decorative Work of Robert Adam (1966) ISBN 0-85458-160-X
  • Arthur T. Bolton, The Architecture of Robert & James Adam, 1785–1794, 2 volumes (1922, reprinted 1984) ISBN 0-907462-49-9 (1984 edition)
  • James Lees-Milne's The Age of Adam (1947) is aimed at the general reader.
  • A. A. Tait, ‘Adam, Robert (1728–1792)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004, doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/105

See also

References

1. ^ Roth, Leland M. (1993). Understanding Architecture: Its Elements, History and Meaning, First, Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 397. ISBN 0-06-430158-3. 
2. ^ Roth, Leland M. (1993). Understanding Architecture: Its Elements, History and Meaning, First, Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 402. ISBN 0-06-430158-3. 
July 3 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

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  • 324 - Battle of Adrianople Constantine I defeats Licinius, who flees to Byzantium.

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8th century - 9th century - 10th century
850s  860s  870s  - 880s -  890s  900s  910s
885 886 887 - 888 - 889 890 891

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Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
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March 3 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

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  • 1431 - Eugene IV becomes Pope.

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17th century - 18th century - 19th century
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Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
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Motto
Nemo me impune lacessit   (Latin)
"No one provokes me with impunity"
"Cha togar m'fhearg gun dioladh"   
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Neoclassicism (sometimes rendered as Neo-Classicism or Neo-classicism) is the name given to quite distinct movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw upon Western classical art and culture (usually that of
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An architect is a person who is involved in the planning, designing and oversight of a building's construction. The word "architect" (Latin: architectus) derives from the Greek arkhitekton (arkhi (chief) + tekton (builder))")[1]
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worldwide view of the subject.
Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page.
Interior design is the process of shaping the experience of interior space, through the manipulation of spatial volume as well as surface treatment.
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A - K
  • Raffie Berberian
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  • Eero Aarnio
  • Robert Adam
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  • Fred Baier
  • Milo Baughman
  • Peter Behrens
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Kirkcaldy
Gaelic - Cathair Challdainn
Scots - Kirkcaudy or The Lang Toun


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Motto
Nemo me impune lacessit   (Latin)
"No one provokes me with impunity"
"Cha togar m'fhearg gun dioladh"   
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William Adam

William Adam, painted 1727 by William Aikman
Personal information
Name William Adam
Nationality Scottish
Birth date October 1689
Birth place Linktown of Abbotshall
(now Kirkcaldy), Fife
Date of death June 24, 1748

Work
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The craft of stonemasonry has existed since the dawn of civilization - creating buildings, structures, and sculpture using stone from the earth. These materials have been used to construct many of the long-lasting, ancient monuments, artifacts, cathedrals, and cities in a wide
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For the Plato scholar, see .


James Adam (21 July 1732 – 20 October 1794) was a Scottish architect and furniture designer, but was often overshadowed by his older brother and business partner, Robert Adam.
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For other persons named John Adam, see John Adam (disambiguation).
John Adam (5 March 1721 – 25 June 1792) was a Scottish architect. Born in Linktown of Abbotshall, now part of Kirkcaldy, Fife, he was the eldest son of architect and entrepreneur
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Motto
Dieu et mon droit   (French)
"God and my right"
Anthem
No official anthem specific to England — the anthem of the United Kingdom is "God Save the Queen".
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Motto
Nemo me impune lacessit   (Latin)
"No one provokes me with impunity"
"Cha togar m'fhearg gun dioladh"   
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William Chambers

William Chambers, painted in 1764 by Frances Cotes
Personal information
Name William Chambers
Nationality Scottish
Birth date October 27 1723
Birth place Gothenburg, Sweden

Work

Significant buildings Somerset House
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The Adam style (or Adamesque) is a style of neoclassical architecture and design as practised by Scottish architect Robert Adam (1728- 1792) and his brothers. A book of engraved designs made the "Adam" repertory available throughout Europe.
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Royal High School

Motto Musis Respublica Floret
(The State Flourishes with the Muses)
Established 1128

Type State school
Religious affiliation Non-denominational

Rector George M. R.
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Edinburgh
Gaelic - Dùn Èideann
Scots - Edinburgh[1]
Auld Reekie, Athens of the North


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University of Edinburgh (Scottish Gaelic: Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann), founded in 1582,[4] is a renowned centre for teaching and research in Edinburgh, Scotland.
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The Jacobite Risings were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in the British Isles occurring between 1688 and 1746. The uprisings were aimed at restoring James VII of Scotland and II of England, and later his descendants of the House of Stuart, to the throne after he was
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State Room in a large European mansion, is usually one of a suite of very grand rooms which were designed to impress. The term was most widely used in the 17th and 18th centuries. They were the most lavishly decorated in the house and contained the finest works of art.
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Hopetoun House is the traditional residence of the Earl of Hopetoun (later the Marquess of Linlithgow). It was built in 1699 and was designed by William Bruce, and extended in 1721 by William Adam. The house is located near South Queensferry to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland.
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Queensferry (often referred to as South Queensferry to distinguish it from North Queensferry), originally a Royal Burgh in West Lothian is now part of the City of Edinburgh, Scotland.
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Fort George, Ardersier, Highland, Scotland, is a large 18th century fortress near Inverness with perhaps the mightiest artillery fortifications in Europe. It was built to pacify the Scottish Highlands in the aftermath of the Jacobite rising of 1745, replacing an earlier
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Dumfries House is a Palladian country house in Ayrshire, Scotland. It is located within a large estate, around 3km west of Cumnock. It was built in the 1750s by John Adam and Robert Adam for William Dalrymple, 5th Earl of Dumfries, and inherited in due course by the Marquesses of
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Inveraray (Inbhir Aora in Gaelic) is a town and former royal burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland, located on the western shore of Loch Fyne near its head, and on the A83 road.
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Grand Tour was a European travel itinerary that flourished from about 1660 until the arrival of mass rail transit in the 1820s. It was popular amongst young British upper-class men and served as an educational rite of passage for the wealthy.
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