(Nicky Browne writes)
Lord Burlington's elegant eighteenth century Chiswick House and Gardens
hosted a dry and pleasant August sketchcrawl. The gardens are famous for their cedars and
their serpentine paths through the woods. There are sculptures, a waterfall and a temple
beside a small lake with an obelisk.
Most people challenged themselves by drawing the Palladian
house with its six columns and dome, and did so impressively and magnificently!
Lord Burlington's design was influenced principally by the
architecture of classical Rome, and also by its re-interpreter, Andrea
Palladio. It is said to be based on
Palladio's last masterpiece, Villa Capra, known as La Rotunda, near Vicenza in
Italy and there is a statue to him at the front of the building.
Certainly Burlington followed Palladio's thesis: “form
formed by the landscape and forming the landscape”. William Kent the architect and garden designer
developed the surrounding park in keeping with this concept.
Photographs by Nicky Browne
