Gothic Profusion: The Bicentennial of the Birth of Augustus Welby Pugin
March 29, 2012 |
AIA Legacy presents Gothic Profusion, a talk at The Octagon Museum to commemorate British architect, Augustus Welby Pugin, on the 200th anniversary of his birth. Join us for light refreshments and a lecture by special guest, James Thunder, a Pugin descendant and member of the Pugin Society of Ramsgate in Kent, England.
If you have heard of Pugin, it would be a surprise. The BBC special in January 2012 conceded that Pugin is far from a household name – even in the UK, “Pugin country,” where the landscape is filled with buildings of his design from a working life of but 15 years: Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, 6 cathedrals, 100 Anglican and Catholic churches, barns, homes, railroad stations, and on and on. Not just the buildings, but
everything inside of them as well: dinnerware, silverware, wallpaper, furniture, floor tile, jewelry. The Victoria and Albert Museum of London possesses hundreds of such artifacts. Pugin worked closely with craftsmen and was a grand publicist, including authoring seven books. Pugin died at age 40 just after his triumphal achievement at the first world’s fair, London’s Great Exhibition of 1851, which made the revival of Gothic architecture welcome throughout the world. You may not know Pugin’s name, but you have undoubtedly seen his influence – even in America.
6:00 pm: Light refreshments
6:30 pm: Gothic Profusion, an illustrated talk by James Thunder
Thunder's talk will be followed by a brief question and answer session and birthday cake.
Register at http://ow.ly/9h7Uz.
|
Website:
ow.ly/9h7uz |
| |
| Location Information |
|
The Octagon Museum |
1799 New York Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20006 |
| Website:
www.theoctagon.org |
| |
| Contact Information |
|
Ronda Bernstein |
| Email:
octagonmuseum@aia.org |
| Phone:
202-626-7439 |
|