Location
Rutland County Museum, Oakham
‘Architectural Fashion vs Common Sense; the 19th Century Battle of Styles and its Legacy for Today’
A one day symposium at Rutland County Museum, Oakham, Saturday 27th September, 2025
Call for Contributions, deadline – 30 April 2025
About this event
J. L. Petit was one of the foremost writers and speakers on Church Architecture in the mid-19th Century, and one of very few standing against the re-introduction of 14th Century Gothic for new building or restoration, as prescribed by his opponents. He stood for originality in new work, and preservation of the old, believing there was great beauty in all previous styles. He devoted his art and speaking to identifying the forms and proportions of beauty in ecclesiastical architecture. He was both a modernist, in an historical age, for new buildings, and at the same time the pioneer of preservation of the old.
The Symposium will explore the Gothic controversy in the East Midlands, and will draw on Petit’s work in the region. It will consist of three keynote lectures and submitted contributions from both academic historians and local historians in the region,
Call for contributions
Contributions are sought for short (15 to 20 minute) presentations either on aspects of the Gothic controversy, ideally with an East Midlands flavour, or on specific restorations and reconstructions of secular buildings and churches in the area during the 19th century. Please send a proposed title and a short (250 word) description to Professor Chris Baker by April 30th 2025.
For more information and to submit your proposal, please visit: https://profchrisbaker.com/john-louis-petit-an-introduction/j-l-petit-architectural-critic/
Image: Wiki Commons – CC 4.0