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Ground Plan of the Proposed New Museum at South Kensington for the Science and Art Department

Design
1863 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Depicting a scheme that was evolved from ca. 1860 to 1865 by the architect Francis Fowke, this proposal for the Victoria and Albert Museum completes and largely corresponds with the fragmentary plan E.1350-1979. As such, it shows a large quadrangle occupying the centre of the site, with an apsed lecture theatre to the north, residences and accommodation for the Art School to the west, and the North and South Courts (since reclad internally; now used for exhibitions) to the east. The southern portion of the site is arranged around a cour d’honneur framed by curving colonnades. Compared with E.1350-1979, this plan, however, shows an earlier design for the lecture theatre, with staircases in the front part of the block and a shallower apse than would be built. In addition, the northern portion of this plan is (aside from the lecture theatre building) coloured to show the use of space, including the internal arrangement of the North Court. Of those features remaining, the court marked ‘Art Division’ would be built in an altered form, but the range on the far west of the site and the cour d’honneur would give way to different plans. Not shown in this print are the inherited structure of Brompton Park House and the temporary structure of the ‘junction’ building. With the latter reaching almost as far as the proposed new lecture theatre block, in 1863 these still occupied much of the south-west portion of the Museum site.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleGround Plan of the Proposed New Museum at South Kensington for the Science and Art Department (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Lithograph with watercolour on paper
Brief description
Lithographic print, design for Victoria and Albert Museum by Francis Fowke, coloured to show room use of existing buildings, 1863
Physical description
Lithograph with watercolour on paper, comprising a proposed architectural plan for completing the Victoria and Albert Museum. The print shows substantial blocks arranged around a central quadrangle, with an apsed lecture theatre to the north, residences and accommodation for the Art School to the west, and the North and South Courts to the east. Separated from the quadrangle by a loggia, the southern portion of the site is arranged around a cour d’honneur framed by curving colonnades. Building use labelled; compass points marked; scale bar. Except in the case of the lecture theatre block, rooms in the northern part of the site are lettered and coloured with watercolour to detail the use of the space.
Dimensions
  • Height of paper height: 36.1cm
  • Width of paper width: 43.6cm
Place depicted
Summary
Depicting a scheme that was evolved from ca. 1860 to 1865 by the architect Francis Fowke, this proposal for the Victoria and Albert Museum completes and largely corresponds with the fragmentary plan E.1350-1979. As such, it shows a large quadrangle occupying the centre of the site, with an apsed lecture theatre to the north, residences and accommodation for the Art School to the west, and the North and South Courts (since reclad internally; now used for exhibitions) to the east. The southern portion of the site is arranged around a cour d’honneur framed by curving colonnades. Compared with E.1350-1979, this plan, however, shows an earlier design for the lecture theatre, with staircases in the front part of the block and a shallower apse than would be built. In addition, the northern portion of this plan is (aside from the lecture theatre building) coloured to show the use of space, including the internal arrangement of the North Court. Of those features remaining, the court marked ‘Art Division’ would be built in an altered form, but the range on the far west of the site and the cour d’honneur would give way to different plans. Not shown in this print are the inherited structure of Brompton Park House and the temporary structure of the ‘junction’ building. With the latter reaching almost as far as the proposed new lecture theatre block, in 1863 these still occupied much of the south-west portion of the Museum site.
Bibliographic reference
Physick, John. The Victoria and Albert Museum: The History of Its Building. London: The Victoria & Albert Museum, 1982.
Collection
Accession number
E.1351-1979

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Record createdJune 30, 2009
Record URL
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