Revivalism in England and Germany

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In the course of the nineteenth century, European architecture passed through the period of revivalism, i.e. return to the previous artistic styles; in particular we should speak about Classical, Gothic, and Renaissance traditions which were frequently interwoven with one another (Bergdoll, p 140). Every country has its own prominent representatives and the buildings constructed during that time partially reflect cultural heritage, values, mentality and beliefs of the nation.

In this essay, we are going to discuss the works of such architects as John Soane and Gottfried Semper. Each of them was significantly influenced by aestheticism of ancient Greece and Rome as well Gothic style. Both of them resisted pretentiousness and mannerism of Baroque and Rococo. It is necessary to compare and contrast their works, paying extra attention to ethnic or cultural peculiarities if any..We can focus on such examples as Dulwich Picture Gallery, Chillington Hall, or the Bank of England, build by John Soane and juxtapose them with Dresden Opera House, Picture Gallery, and Municipal Theatre of Vienna designed by Gottfried Semper.

At this point it is too early to jump to any conclusions but we can say that Gottfried Semper was a avid supporter of Roman architecture and Moore style with its grandeur and pomposity, while John Soane tried to unite both classical tradition and modernity. As far as mentality and values of each nation are concerned we can say that there are some features which have ethic coloring but they are not sufficient enough to judge about the character of British or German people. As a matter of fact, the very existence of this concept is disputed.

On the whole, it is quite possible for us to argue that John Soanes artistic preferences were impacted by antiquity both Greek and Roman. His exterior designed can be characterized by clarity and geometrical accuracy of lines, meticulousness in details and large scale especially if we are referring to the Bank of England the work which is believed to be his masterpiece (Stroud, p 50). In this case, the term “large scale” is not synonymous to pomposity. He was intent to make this edifice look majestic to the onlooker but he had to adapt it to other buildings which lie in proximity to the Bank of England.

He brilliantly incorporated sculptures into this construction and managed to maintain equilibrium between the minimalism of Greek architecture and the excessiveness of Baroque. The façade is slightly reminiscent to Roman style with extensive use of colonnades in the lower and upper tiers of the edifice. (Please, refer to the appendix Picture 1). In addition to that, we should point out that John Soane made every detail prominent, and avoided the so-called “fluidity” of Baroque. Symmetry and regularity of geometrical forms are the major peculiarities of this work which relies on the best examples of ancient Greece.

Furthermore, we should say that John Soane also employed some elements which were mostly British namely the sculptures of rampant lions. Thus, we can argue in some way he wanted to set stress of the power of the British Empire. (Dyos, p 70 ). However, these elements are not the most important part of the composition.

It is rather difficult to say whether his artistic manner reflects any peculiarities of English people or their values. However, this work produced an impression of strength, stability, reserve and moderation. These are the qualities which have always been appreciated in England. It should be born in mind this is a governmental institutions which has look both powerful and reassuring, and John Soane succeeded in achieving this result. The key idea which guided the author is that art must combine tradition and modernity, aestheticism and usefulness; it has to be adapted for the needs of the inhabitants or organization.

Although this architectural masterpiece has undergone many modifications during the twentieth century the original features are still conspicuous. In sharp contrast, Gottfried Semper focused on the grandeur of his works and gave preference to Roman rather than Greek style. In the vast majority of case, the outcome and appearance of the building depend upon the requirements imposed on the architect.

While analyzing artistic manner of John Soane, one should focus on Neo-Gothic because he frequently referred to medieval architecture. For instance, we can mention Dulwich Picture Gallery. To some extent, it bears a strong resemblance a miniature copy of a medieval castle. First, this gallery is build of undressed brick, which was more typical of thirteenth or fourteenth centuries (Please, refer to the appendix Picture 2).

Another feature inherent to Gothic is small turrets. This building evinces safety and impregnability. To a certain degree, this work embodies security, strength and privacy, the values that are considered to be vital for the British. In order to get better understanding of this design, we need to take into account the political situation of that period. At that moment of history, the United Kingdom was by far the most powerful state in the world, unconquerable and resilient to any external pressure. Therefore, John Soane was intent to show it in his drafts and designs.

In this respect, it should be pointed out that a great number of his works enjoyed enormous demand among the richest people of that time and especially nobility. We may remember Chillington Hall owned the Gillard family. The architect tried to combine both Classical and Gothic traditions. Colonnades, ribbed vaults, chimneys which remind turrets and the use of red brick create a very curious amalgam of both antiquity and middle ages (Appendix Picture 3).

This case illustrates British notions of a good house, which has to be secure and comfortable. In part it illustrates the old English proverb “”my home is my castle” Still, we have to emphasize a very significant fact. the architecture cannot be the index of a nations ideas and values because the style of any project is frequently determined by other factors such as landscape, density of the population, other buildings and so forth. The architect has to take them into consideration; he is not a free artist who follows only his imagination. The management of physical environment gives only indirect insights into the mentality of the nation.

Apart from that, while discussing the impact of classical tradition on John Soane, we should not concentrate only on ancient Greece or Rome because he drew his inspiration from French classicism. He took keen interest in landscape design. He was not engaged with planning gardens but he attempted to adjust his buildings to surrounding nature as he did it while working on South Hill Park (Appendix, Picture 4). Judging from these examples, we can argue that John Soane alternated Neoclassicism (including Greek, Roman and French traditions) and Neo-Gothic but certainly classicism was the prevailing characteristic of his style.

In some way, his designs express the beliefs and values of the nations, namely longing for security, privacy, moderation and mostly importantly autonomy. Again, we need to emphasize that this was partially caused by the political situation in Europe and the role of the UK. It is rather unlikely that John Soane was very much concerned about these questions while he created his projects but still this epoch left a trace in his style.

At this point of the discussion, we should draw parallels between John Soane and Gottfried Semper. There are several similarities: first, as it has been noted before, both of them were disinclined to follow Baroque style. Certainly, the architectural works were not entirely minimalistic however; they carefully avoided asymmetric forms, obscurity of lines and excessiveness of sculptures (Hvattum, p 15). They were more conservative in their tastes.

However, Gottfried Semper was a close supporter or Roman architecture, one of the most famous examples of his style is Dresden Opera House. The Roman presence can be traced in the following elements: architrave or the ornamental band which frames rectangular opening, and some pomposity of the construction, which seems to tower above other buildings (Appendix, Picture 5). Artistic critics also refer the Municipal Theatre of Vienna, which is also executed n Roman style (Picture 6). It should be pointed out that ancient Romans often used white marble as the main building material. The thing is that white color adds makes the construction look more voluminous and Semper undoubted wanted to achieve this effect.

It is rather difficult to say how exactly this reflects the ideas and values of German nation. Perhaps, these examples tell us that they are prone to create monumental or pompous things, with less regard to their usefulness. But this is just a conjecture because there are many cases which disprove this standpoint. The thing is that Gottfried Semper must not be regarded as the embodiment of German mentality. Besides, we can argue that any architect would have tried to create a very voluminous or majestic building provided that he or she had resource, time, and sufficient space to do it. The thing is that we should not forget about the location.

The Bank of England, created by John Soane is situated in a densely populated district of London, whereas Dresden Opera House is placed in a wide open space and the German architect clearly had a free hand. But it has to be admitted that Semper was more inclined to work on large-scale projects and he was mindful of how to adjust them to other buildings.

In addition to that Gottfried Semper was immensely fascinated by Moorish Revival. At the beginning of the nineteenth century a great number of German architects were inspired by Islamic or oriental style, which attaches primary importance to ornamental exterior and tracery. In this regard, we should pay attention to Semper Synagogue. It was greatly inspired by the gardens of Alhambra. Unfortunately, this unique edifice was destroyed during the short era of the Third Reich, and there are only sparse sketches and drawings of Semper Synagogue (Please, refer to the appendix picture 7). In this design, he alternated oriental interior with medieval tradition.

There are several theories explaining why Gottfried Semper was so attracted by Moorish Revival. First, during that time, German artists (mostly representatives of Romanticism) explored Eastern culture or oriental motives frequently manifested themselves in their works. Secondly, we should not overlook the fact that Germany has always been a multinational country which homes people belonging to different ethnic origins. Probably, this is why the famous architect participated in this project.

In this work, Gottfried Semper tried to prove that a house can combine almost incompatible styles, such as Moor architecture and Gothic but even despite this fact this edifice produce a powerful impression on the viewer. It was a brilliant chance for him to show his ability to play with different aesthetic traditions. Semper Synagogue was a beautiful mixture of gothic and oriental architecture but due to the overwhelming forces it has not survived.

The second similarity, which exists between Gottfried Semper and John Soane is the reliance of medieval tradition. In part, Semper adhered to the artistic principles of Middle Ages while he constructed Dresden Paining Gallery. There are various elements of Gothic revivalism in this work, for example, pointed arches, steeples, and minimalistic ornament (Appenix, 6). Of course, Soane was affected by the architecture of Middle Ages but this influence was less conspicuous, while Dresden Paining Gallery strongly resembles medieval abbey. The major difference between them lies in the following: Semper was intent to follow previous architectural traditions as close as possible, while Soane attempted to be more modern in his interpretation of classical and medieval traditions.

Therefore, we can arrive at the conclusion that both Gottfried Semper and John Soane strongly relied on aesthetic principles of the previous generations: antiquity and Middle Ages. However, it should be mentioned that Soane was more oriented towards Greek architecture with its minimalism, whereas Semper advocated Roman style, which is marked by pomposity, reliance on open space, and voluminosity of the building. The second fact which must not be overlooked is that Semper took much interest into Eastern culture especially if we are speaking about Dresden Synagogue. To a certain extent their works reflect the values of the ideas of English and German nations.

John Soanes works illustrate some qualities of the British character, in particular moderation, composure, and reserve. Furthermore, they shout that privacy, security and stability are of the crucial importance of the citizens of the United Kingdom. Sempers projects are not so informative. Perhaps, the key driver is the desire to create things which would last for ages and impress future generations. Nonetheless, these are only separate examples; it is hardly permissible to make conclusions about the mentality of the nation on the basis of this analysis.

Bibliography

Bergdoll. Bergdoll B. European architecture, 1750-1890. Oxford. Oxford University Press.

Dyos Dyos HJ Victorian City. The Victorian City: Images and Realities. London. Taylor & Francis.

Collins. Collins P. 1998 Changing ideals in modern architecture, 1750-1950. McGill-Queen’s Press – MQUP/.

Stroud. Stroud. D, 1961. The Architecture of Sir John Soane. London Studio.

Francis Fransis. H.1996. Gottfried Semper – Architect of the Nineteenth Century (New Haven/London,). Malrgave.

Hvattum, Mari. Gottfried Semper and the Problem of Historicism (Cambridge, 2004).

Moffet Moffet M. 2003. A world history of architecture. New York Laurence King Publishing.

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Revivalism in England and Germany

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