Aeronautic View of the Great Exhibition Building
Print
1851 (printed)
1851 (printed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
A published view of the Crystal Palace, printed by colour lithography. With this technique a picture is made by printing from a flat surface (traditionally stone, now often a metal plate), on which the artist draws or paints the original design with a greasy substance. The surface is next prepared, moistened and inked; the greasy printing ink adheres to the design, which is then printed onto a sheet of paper.
Historical Associations
There was much opposition to the initial plan for an exhibition in Hyde Park. It was the design for the Crystal Palace that the architect Joseph Paxton published in the Illustrated News that caught the nation's imagination, and further images continued to be published to encourage sustained support for the scheme. The accompanying text emphasises the construction details and the skill required by Paxton and the construction company, Fox, Henderson & Co., to create a building covering such a large site.
A published view of the Crystal Palace, printed by colour lithography. With this technique a picture is made by printing from a flat surface (traditionally stone, now often a metal plate), on which the artist draws or paints the original design with a greasy substance. The surface is next prepared, moistened and inked; the greasy printing ink adheres to the design, which is then printed onto a sheet of paper.
Historical Associations
There was much opposition to the initial plan for an exhibition in Hyde Park. It was the design for the Crystal Palace that the architect Joseph Paxton published in the Illustrated News that caught the nation's imagination, and further images continued to be published to encourage sustained support for the scheme. The accompanying text emphasises the construction details and the skill required by Paxton and the construction company, Fox, Henderson & Co., to create a building covering such a large site.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Aeronautic View of the Great Exhibition Building |
| Materials and techniques | Colour lithograph |
| Brief description | Print, Aeronautic View of the Great Exhibition Building, Ackerman, ca. 1851 |
| Physical description | 'Aeronautic' view of the Great Exhibition building - bird's eye view from the north-west. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label | British Galleries:
This imaginary, birds-eye view of the Crystal Palace shows its location in Hyde Park. The view gives a sense of the size of the building, which covered a total area of almost 19 acres. In the distance the River Thames, St. Paul's Cathedral and Buckingham Palace can be seen.(27/03/2003) |
| Object history | This is the finest depiction of the Great Exhibition building ever made, the so called 'aeronautic view' from the north-west, described by critics as 'the great vitreous expanse'. It shows the building as if seen from a balloon suspended above the Serpentine lake in Hyde Park. Above the left of the building can be seen the colossal statue of the Duke of Wellington that then surmounted the triumphal arch at the top of Constitution hill, the classical screen at Hyde Park Corner and Apsley House, the Duke's London home. To the right is the area that after the exhibition was bought with its profits of a quarter of a million pounds and, as it developed came to be known as the Albertopolis, a vast complex of museum and educational institutions. In the distance can be seen St. Paul's Cathedral, the Thames and Buckingham Palace. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Places depicted | |
| Summary | Object Type A published view of the Crystal Palace, printed by colour lithography. With this technique a picture is made by printing from a flat surface (traditionally stone, now often a metal plate), on which the artist draws or paints the original design with a greasy substance. The surface is next prepared, moistened and inked; the greasy printing ink adheres to the design, which is then printed onto a sheet of paper. Historical Associations There was much opposition to the initial plan for an exhibition in Hyde Park. It was the design for the Crystal Palace that the architect Joseph Paxton published in the Illustrated News that caught the nation's imagination, and further images continued to be published to encourage sustained support for the scheme. The accompanying text emphasises the construction details and the skill required by Paxton and the construction company, Fox, Henderson & Co., to create a building covering such a large site. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 19614 |
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| Record created | February 21, 2000 |
| Record URL |
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