The style of the early Georgian period was inspired by the architecture of the early Roman Empire, and its influence can be felt in the majority of the architecture that can be seen through to the early Twentieth Century. The influence is mainly two-fold; firstly in the proportions employed in shaping a space, and secondly the character which is predominantly defined by the timber, plaster or stone mouldings, seen in or on a building.
In their simplest form, mouldings are a means of creating character and interest through the introduction of the contrast between shadow and light on an object. Mouldings are created using a simple palate of a few basic shapes, for example an ovolo is a convex curve, whilst a cavetto is a concave curve; a cyma recta is a cavetto followed by an ovolo, whereas a cyma reversa is the opposite. It is the subtle differences of composition and relative emphasis of these elements that create mouldings with character of infinite variety.
In terms of proportion, no individual shapes are in themselves either outstandingly beautiful or ugly. The secret of good proportion seems to be defined, not by the shapes themselves, but by their interaction. It would otherwise be difficult to explain how, for instance, the buildings of Palladio and those of Gaudi can both be well proportioned, when they employ quite different systems of shapes. The essence of good proportion seems to have been largely established by the architects of classical antiquity, and by certain key figures since. For example, the introduction of classically inspired architecture to Britain from the 17th century onwards was influenced by the work of the Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio as well as exposure to his source material studied during the Grand Tour undertaken by many of the architects (starting with Inigo Jones and demonstrated in his designs for the first classically inspired building in Britain, The Queen’s House in Greenwich, completed in 1635) and their patrons.
Palladio’s basis for good proportion used two principal sources; classical Roman architecture and the proportions of the human form (represented by the Golden Section). The feeling of “rightness” about Palladian interiors has been attributed to the fact that these spaces correspond directly with human proportions.
The desire for good proportion was embraced by the early exponents of British Palladianism and can be seen in the detailing of exteriors and interiors alike, from before the Georgian period through to the present day, but this does not mean that changes have not occurred. Functional constraints of differing building types and scales, successive architectural movements and economic considerations have all affected the relative proportions employed in interior detailing, and this underlines the need for direct reference to original source material in order to accurately recreate period detailing.
Michael Costello 2009
