Jefferson's Fine Arts Library


Book Description




Jefferson on Display


Book Description

When we think of Thomas Jefferson, a certain picture comes to mind for some of us, combining his physical appearance with our perception of his character. During Jefferson’s lifetime this image was already taking shape, helped along by his own assiduous cultivation. In Jefferson on Display, G. S. Wilson draws on a broad array of sources to show how Jefferson fashioned his public persona to promote his political agenda. During his long career, his image shifted from cosmopolitan intellectual to man of the people. As president he kept friends and foes guessing: he might appear unpredictably in old, worn, and out-of-date clothing with hair unkempt, yet he could as easily play the polished gentleman in a black suit, as he hosted small dinners in the President’s House that were noted for their French-inspired food and fine European wines. Even in retirement his image continued to evolve, as guests at Monticello reported being met by the Sage clothed in rough fabrics that he proudly claimed were created from his own merino sheep, leading Americans by example to manufacture their own clothing, free of Europe. By paying close attention to Jefferson’s controversial clothing choices and physical appearance--as well as his use of portraiture, architecture, and the polite refinements of dining, grooming, and conversation--Wilson provides invaluable new insight into this perplexing founder.




The Cambridge Companion to Thomas Jefferson


Book Description

This Companion forms an accessible introduction to the life and work of Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United States and author of the Declaration of Independence. Essays explore Jefferson's political thought, his policies towards Native Americans, his attitude to race and slavery, as well as his interests in science, architecture, religion and education. Contributors include leading literary scholars and historians; the essays offer up to date overviews of his many interests, his friendships and his legacy. Together, they reveal his importance in the cultural and political life of early America. At the same time these original essays speak to abiding modern concerns about American culture and Jefferson's place in it. This Companion will be essential reading for students and scholars of Jefferson, and is designed for use by students of American literature and American history.




Thomas Jefferson and Philosophy


Book Description

Though it is not uncommon for historians to have something to say concerning philosophical strands in Jefferson’s thought, that something is usually insubstantial—often misleadingly so—or inchoate. Overall, precious little has been said. The significance of the man and the richness of his thought demands that this defect be remedied. Thomas Jefferson and Philosophy is a collection of nine new essays on philosophical elements in Jefferson’s writings. The first of its kind, this collection should lead to further philosophical analysis of Jefferson’s thinking—especially by philosophers, who tend to appreciate Jefferson only as the author of the Declaration of Independence—and to greater appreciation for the man who gave to statesmanship a large number of the prime of his years out of a moral sense of duty to others. In that regard, Jefferson was always first a philosopher. This book will be a valuable read for students and scholars of history, political theory, and philosophy, as well as anyone interested in the thought of Thomas Jefferson.




Thomas Jefferson, Architect


Book Description

A compelling reassessment of Thomas Jefferson's architecture that scrutinizes the complex, and sometimes contradictory, meanings of his iconic work Renowned as a politician and statesman, Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) was also one of the premier architects of the early United States. Adept at reworking Renaissance--particularly Palladian--and Enlightenment ideals to the needs of the new republic, Jefferson completed visionary building projects such as his two homes, Monticello and Poplar Forest; the Capitol building in Richmond; and the University of Virginia campus. Featuring a wealth of archival images, including models, paintings, drawings, and prints, this volume presents compelling essays that engage broad themes of history, ethics, philosophy, classicism, neoclassicism, and social sciences while investigating various aspects of Jefferson's works, design principles, and complex character. In addition to a thorough introduction to Jefferson's career as an architect, the book provides insight into his sources of inspiration and a nuanced take on the contradictions between his ideas about liberty and his embrace of slavery, most poignantly reflected in his plan for the academical village at the University of Virginia, which was carefully designed to keep enslaved workers both invisible and accessible. Thomas Jefferson, Architect offers fresh perspectives on Jefferson's architectural legacy, which has shaped the political and social landscape of the nation and influenced countless American architects since his time.




The Jefferson Image in the American Mind


Book Description

Since its publication in 1960, The Jefferson Image in the American Mind has become a classic of historical scholarship. In it Merrill D. Peterson charts Thomas Jefferson's influence upon American thought and imagination since his death in 1826. Peterson shows how the public attitude toward Jefferson has always paralleled the political climate of the time; the complexities of the man, his thoughts, and his deeds being viewed only in fragments by later generations. He explains how the ideas of Jefferson have been distorted, defended, pilloried, or used by virtually every leading politician, historian, and intellectual. Through most of our history, political parties have engaged in an ideological tug-of-war to see who would wear "the mantle of Jefferson."




Architecture's Appeal


Book Description

This collection of previously unpublished essays from a diverse range of well-known scholars and architects builds on the architectural tradition of phenomenological hermeneutics as developed by Dalibor Veseley and Joseph Rykwert and carried on by David Leatherbarrow, Peter Carl and Alberto Pérez-Gómez. Taking an interdisciplinary approach and drawing on ideas from beyond the architectural canon, contributors including Kenneth Frampton, David Leatherbarrow, Juhani Pallasmaa, Karsten Harries, Steven Holl, Indra Kagis McEwen, Paul Emmons, and Louise Pelletier offer new insights and perspectives on questions such as the following: Given the recent fascination with all things digital and novel, what is the role of history and theory in contemporary architectural praxis? Is authentic meaning possible in a technological environment that is so global and interconnected? What is the nature and role of the architect in our shared modern world? How can these questions inform a new model of architectural praxis? Architecture's Appeal is a thought-provoking book which will inspire further scholarly inquiry and act as a basis for discussion in the wider field as well as graduate seminars in architectural theory and history.




The Architecture of Jefferson Country


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"But what is less well known are the many important examples of other architectural idioms built in this Piedmont Virginia county, many by nationally renowned architects.".




10 Buildings That Changed America


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10 Buildings that Changed America tells the stories of ten influential works of architecture, the people who imagined them, and the way these landmarks ushered in innovative cultural shifts throughout our society. The book takes readers on a journey across the country and inside these groundbreaking works of art and engineering. The buildings featured are remarkable not only for aesthetic and structural reasons, but also because their creators instilled in them a sense of purpose and personality that became reflected in an overarching sense the American identity. Edited by the staff of WTTW, the Chicago PBS affiliate that is the most-watched public television station in the country, 10 Buildings will be released alongside the national broadcast of an hour-long special by the same name. This television event will be promoted over digital media, on-ground events, and educational initiatives in schools, and the book will be a significant component to all of these elements. 10 Buildings retells the shocking, funny, and even sad stories of how these buildings came to be. It offers a peek inside the imaginations of ten daring architects who set out to change the way we live, work, and play. From American architectural stalwarts like Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, to modern revolutionaries like Frank Gehry and Robert Venturi, this book examines the most prominent buildings designed by the most noteworthy architects of our time. Also profiled are Americans less noted for their architectural acumen, but no less significant for their contributions to the field. Thomas Jefferson, a self-taught architect, is profiled for designing the iconic Virginia State Capitol. Taking its inspiration from ancient Rome, America's first major public building forged a philosophical link between America and the world's earliest democracies. Similarly, Henry Ford employed Albert Kahn to design a state-of-the-art, innovative factory for Ford's groundbreaking assembly line. Reinforced concrete supported massive, open rooms without any interior dividing walls, which yields the uninterrupted space that was essential for Ford's sprawling continuous production setups. What's more, Kahn considered the needs of workers by including astonishingly modern large windows and louvers for fresh air. The design of each of these ten buildings was completely monumental and prodigious in its time because of the architect’s stylistic or functional innovations. Each was also highly influential, inspiring a generation or more of architects, who in turn made a lasting impact on the American landscape. We see the legacy of architects like Mies van der Rohe or H.H. Richardson all around us: in the homes where we live, the offices where we work, our public buildings, and our houses of worship. All have been shaped in one way or another by a handful of imaginative, audacious, and sometimes even arrogant individuals throughout history whose bold ideas have been copied far and wide. 10 Buildings is the ideal collection to detail the flashes of inspiration from these architects who dared to strike out on their own and design radical new types of buildings that permanently altered our environmental and cultural landscape.