The Palladio-inspired Homewood House PHOTO BY JAY VANRENSSELAER

Homewood House and Mount Clare museums this week will present Palladian Baltimore: Builders and Bibliophiles, a one-day symposium celebrating Andrea Palladio's influence on Baltimore architecture. The talks will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 1, beginning on the Homewood campus and concluding at Mount Clare. The event is part of Homewood House's Great Architects Lecture Series.

The architect who most influenced Baltimore's early buildings did not hail from Baltimore — nor did he live during the 18th century. Instead, it was Andrea Palladio, a 16th-century Italian and a man so revered by late-18th-century carpenters here that their float in the Constitutional Procession of 1788 featured a painting of Palladio alongside one of George Washington.

Homewood House is a superb example of a Palladian building. Its temple-front portico and five-part plan, a popular home design in early Maryland, are derived from Palladio's published designs for villas. Charles Carroll Jr., Homewood's original owner, was a member of the Library Company of Baltimore, through which he had access to Palladio's Four Books of Architecture and nearly 20 other volumes on architecture, many of which followed Palladio's works.

In the April 1 lectures, architects and scholars will share their knowledge of Baltimore's Palladian structures, which include Homewood, Mount Clare Mansion and Hampton Mansion. Setting the stage for the talks will be an opportunity to view and discuss The Four Books of Architecture and other works from the catalog of the Library Company of Baltimore. A special feature will be a lecture citing newly published research on Villa Cornaro in the Veneto region of Italy, one of Palladio's most influential villas, and a book signing of the recently published Palladian Days.

Admission to the day's lectures is $25/$10 students; for reservations and additional information, call Homewood at 410-516-5589. Seven AIA-CES credits are awarded for the full program.

 

Palladian Baltimore: Builders and Bibliophiles

9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Homewood campus; lectures in 101 Remsen
"Palladio in Baltimore: An In-Person Look at The Four Books and More From the Catalog of the Library Company," John Buchtel, curator of rare books, JHU
"Palladio's Villa Cornaro," Carl and Sally Gable, authors of Palladian Days and owners of Villa Cornaro, Italy
"Architecture as Representation: The Morris Suite of Baltimore Painted Furniture," Lance Humphries, independent scholar
"Palladio and the Practical House Carpenter: Influences on Homewood," Catherine Rogers Arthur, curator, Homewood House
Palladian Days book signing and pre-ordered box lunches or attendees' own bag lunch in Homewood House's wine cellar, followed by carpool travel to Mount Clare (approximately 30 minutes)

2 to 5 p.m. Mount Clare Museum; lectures in the stables
"From 'Virtuous Ancients' to Exuberant Abundance: Architectural Influences at Hampton Hall," Lynne Dakin Hastings, curator, Hampton National Historic Site
Welcome and Introduction to Mount Clare, Jane Woltereck, director
"Mount Clare: An Annapolis House in Baltimore," Peter Pearre, president, Trostel and Pearre, Architects
Architectural tour of Mount Clare with Peter Pearre

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