CHAPTER IX

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GENERAL NOTICE OF PUBLIC LIFE.

Public action--His natural dislike of publicity--His characteristics as a Commissioner--Royal Academy--Scheme for Architectural Education--Royal Institute of British Architects--Scientific Societies--Royal Commission of 1851--Exposition Universelle of 1855--Professional arbitrations at Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Leeds--St. Paul’s Cathedral Committee.

To the description already given of Sir Charles Barry’s architectural works, it is necessary to add a brief notice of the various public commissions and duties in which he was called upon to take part. The labour bestowed on such work is perhaps less effective, certainly it is less definite in its results. But no man, who takes a leading position, has either the power or the right to refuse what is absolutely necessary for collective life and action.

In respect of such official labours, it must be remembered, that his constant occupation in professional work, and his great dislike of public speaking and public appearances, kept him to some extent removed from public life. No one acted more consistently on the conviction, that each man contributes most to the great sum of general progress by doing in the best possible way the task, which his station and talents specially mark out for him. But, whenever questions arose directly or indirectly bearing upon Art, he was naturally called upon for his opinion and his services; and under these circumstances, even at the busiest periods of his life, he could always make time for the work, and take the liveliest interest in its progress.

He served, therefore, on several public commissions. In some respects he must have been an embarrassing coadjutor. At all times he was more inclined to originate than to criticize; and he would seldom consent to limit his ideas by strict considerations of immediate practicability. He was apt therefore to strike out a line of his own, for which perhaps he could not command the sympathy of his colleagues; and, even when he found the impracticability of such wider schemes, he was reluctant to acquiesce in any others, which might seem to him too narrow for the occasion. Yet it has been seen how frequently it happened, that the ideas which he threw out proved ultimately fruitful, though under other hands, and under different circumstances from those contemplated by himself. For perhaps one of his most striking characteristics was quickness of conception, and a certain “readiness of mind,” which made its large resources available on the instant. This was certainly united in his own actual work with an unwearied industry in the working out of his general conceptions, and a willingness to consider and test them in every possible point of view. But in the task of suggestion and criticism, which belongs to a commission, it had the opportunities of rapid and fruitful exercise, and he was always ready to meet every need, and overcome every difficulty. Partly from a sanguine hopefulness, which led him to make light of obstacles, partly from a deliberate conviction, that in a country like our own considerations of expense are trifling, if any great public want is really supplied, he was always led to boldness and comprehensiveness in his conceptions, which might probably cause alarm in the first instance, and prevent the immediate execution of his designs, but which nevertheless arrested public attention, and showed the ultimate object which public convenience demanded. There are few public improvements at present proposed, which did not at one time or another come under his official notice, and set his pencil to work.

He was connected also with most of the artistic and scientific societies of England, and found in them abundant scope for activity.

ROYAL ACADEMY.--In the work of the Royal Academy he took the greatest interest, for he had high ideas of what it should attempt in the guidance and direct inculcation of Art. Being himself a man little fettered by system, he was quite aware how little academies can kindle originality of talent, how liable they are to the danger of ignoring or even discouraging it. He had artistic friends, whose genius he greatly admired, among those who stood aloof from the Academy, who were the bitterest denouncers of its actual work, and who would have denied it even a theoretical value. But he always maintained that it had a most important sphere, and he contended, that, allowing for the inevitable defects of all institutions, it was working usefully and conscientiously in the right path. This being the case, he was anxious at all times to improve and develope that action still further, so as to make it, even more than it is, the mainstay and guide of artistic progress.

It was to his own department of Art that his attention was mainly directed. This was due, not by any means to a narrow-minded exclusiveness, for his great desire was that all branches of Art should be proportionately represented, but to an idea that architecture and sculpture existed in the Academy almost by sufferance under the overwhelming predominance of the painters, and that they ought to have a larger influence and more extensive representation. His own art he believed to be most comprehensive of all in its scope and requirements, and at least as powerful as any, in its effects on the taste and intellectual progress of the country. He was therefore impatient of its being regarded as holding a secondary position, and having a quasi-mechanical character. As an Associate, an Academician, and a member of Council, he laboured at all times to advance its due claims.

More particularly he felt that there was in England a great want of a more formal and definite architectural education, and this want he conceived that the Academy ought to supply. In 1856 a large Committee was formed, with orders to consider how the instruction in the schools of the Royal Academy could be improved. The subject of Architecture was delegated to a small sub-Committee, consisting of Messrs. Cockerell and Hardwick, and Sir C. Barry. Each member of the Committee prepared suggestions for a scheme of architectural instruction, and these suggestions were carefully and thoroughly discussed. No result, however, followed from the time and thought expended on the subject; indeed, the sub-Committee were fettered by alleged deficiency, both of accommodation and of funds, for the carrying out of a perfect scheme. They reported accordingly in favour of an annual grant of 150_l._ for a travelling studentship, to be held for one year, and gained by competition amongst the students who had obtained the gold medal. But even this was not acted upon.

Sir C. Barry himself greatly doubted the cogency of the arguments brought against the proposed improvements, believing that space could be found or made, and that some part of the pecuniary balance in favour of the Royal Academy (which was stated officially in 1860 as amounting annually to above 3000_l._ on an average of seven years) might be well expended for such a purpose, instead of being added to the large funds (above 100,000_l._) already in hand. His own paper of suggestions is full and elaborate. Perhaps it may seem to err on the side of excess in requirements; and possibly his strong sense of his own want of regular artistic education may have inclined him to this side; but it will probably be thought to point in the right direction, and will have interest at this time, when it is felt that artistic education is not only both possible and desirable, but also capable of being based on systematic principles. The practical question must recur, and, when it does so, some guidance must be found in the record of the opinions of any who have thought much on the theory of architecture, and have had experience of its actual capabilities and needs. The transference of the Academy to the larger accommodation now provided on the Burlington House site must remove all difficulties of space, and probably, by the very fact of change and enlargement, give an impetus to activity and efficiency of work.

His scheme is accordingly subjoined.

CURRICULUM FOR THE STUDY OF ARCHITECTURE.

ELEMENTARY TEACHING.

1. Geometry, trigonometry, hydraulics, hydrostatics, chemistry, optics, acoustics, geology, and mineralogy; and mechanics as far as they relate to the powers and forces applied to the purposes of construction.

2. Nature and properties of materials used for constructive and ornamental purposes.

3. Principles of construction.

4. Drawing, perspective, and sciography.

5. Drawing from the human form, from the life, and from casts.

6. Freehand drawing from natural objects with reference to decoration.

7. Conventional treatment of such objects as applicable to architectonic decoration.

8. Drawing and modelling of ornament.

9. Drawing of the elements of each recognised order or style of architecture.

10. Drawing of the best works of the Greeks, the Romans, the mediævalists, and the most eminent masters of the revival of classical architecture.

N.B. It is suggested that the whole of the above studies should be conducted at the national establishments for art and science, the Schools of Design, King’s College, London, the London University, and other accredited institutions for teaching art and science, with a view to obtaining certificates of proficiency from such institutions as a qualification for admission to the Royal Academy.

FINE ART TEACHING, OR THE HIGHER BRANCHES.

Principles of--

1. Form, proportion, harmony, expression, outline, and stability in composition.

2. Principles of ornamentation.

3. Principles of colour in ornamentation.

4. Sciographic and orthographic rules and systems of composition employed by the Greeks, the Romans, and the mediævalists, in Architectural Design.

5. Studies of composition in the several distinctly recognised styles in ancient and modern times.

6. Principles of the application of painting and sculpture in architectonic decoration.

7. Principles of the application of high art in painting and sculpture in combination with architecture.

8. Exercises upon designs of existing works with reference to the correction of what may be at variance with the true principles of art.

9. Original composition emanating from the use of new materials in construction, and the omission of all that interferes with convenience and durability in the old or recognised styles, or that may be incompatible with modern habits, fashions, and requirements, or unsuitable to the climate of the country in urban or suburban districts.

N.B. It is suggested that the above-named studies in the Fine Art Department, or higher branches of architecture, should be taught within the walls of the Academy.

REGULATIONS AS TO TEACHING IN THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE.

1. That, with a view to the efficient working out of the rules and regulations of the Academy, specific duties with certain privileges and emoluments should be assigned to each degree of membership in the Academy, and that all should contribute their quota to the teaching in the school. Thus, from the class of R.A. should be chosen the visitor of the school for the time being, who should be responsible to the council; from the class of A.R.A. should be chosen a superintendent of the school, who should be responsible to the visitor for its discipline; and from a proposed new class to be called the Medallists of the Royal Academy should be chosen the teachers in the school.

2. That a course of lectures should be given in each year upon the History and Literature of Architecture, with criticisms upon existing works, excepting (as at present) upon those of living authors.

3. That two strictly architectural or scholastic competitions, one for the silver medal and one for the gold medal, upon subjects to be given by the visitor and council for the time being, should take place in each year, and that the drawings offered in such competitions should be exhibited to the public, prior to any decision upon them.

4. That the prize drawings in such competitions should be exhibited at the annual exhibitions, with an appropriate notice of them in the catalogue.

5. That the school be open on Thursdays from ten till four, and on other days of the week from seven till nine p.m., vacations excepted.

HONOURS OF THE ROYAL ACADEMY.

That a silver and gold medal should be offered every year; the former for the best study of existing works, and the latter for the best work in original composition.

That the gold medallists should, in addition, receive a prize of fifty guineas, and a travelling studentship for two years, with a salary of 100_l._ per annum, and at the end of that time a right of membership in the Academy, as a class with certain privileges.

That in the annual publication of the names of members of the Academy, those in the class of medallists (namely, such as have obtained the gold medal) be included.

REGULATIONS WITH REGARD TO STUDENTS.

That proper certificates from public and other institutions for the teaching of art and science be produced by candidates for admission to the Academy, for the approval of the council, together with an original design and drawing of ornament as at present.

That such candidates as are considered by the council to be properly qualified, in all respects, be admitted as probationers, upon condition of preparing an original design within the walls of the Academy for the approval of council as at present.

That upon the approval of such probationary designs, candidates shall be admitted to the School of Architecture for two years.

That during the first year they may be allowed to compete for the silver medal, and during the second year for the gold medal and its rewards and privileges.

ACCOMMODATION REQUIRED.

That one room, the upper portion of whose walls may be covered with a select collection of architectural casts, should be set apart exclusively for a school of architecture as well as for exhibitional purposes.

That the occasional use of an adjoining room for exhibitional purposes be granted, when not required for the annual exhibitions.

It was a subject of great disappointment to him that this scheme was rejected, and nothing put in its place. He was also disappointed, that, as has been seen in the last chapter, the design which he prepared for a new building, and by which he thought that his name might be permanently connected with the Academy, fell to the ground. But he still took as much interest as ever in its action. To the last he was a constant attendant at its meetings and on its business. One thing he never could be persuaded to do for this or for any other institution, viz., to deliver lectures or speeches, or even read papers on architectural subjects. But anything else he was ready and glad to attempt, and he prized his connection with the Royal Academy at the highest possible value.

ROYAL INSTITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHITECTS.--With this important institution he was connected from the beginning. In November, 1831, he discussed the principles of its formation with Professor Donaldson, to whom it has owed so much, both in its first foundation and its subsequent development. On December 3rd, 1834, he attended its first meeting, and records in his diary the completion of its charter on January 17th, 1837. Subsequently he became a Fellow and a Vice-President of the Institute. On the death of Earl de Grey, when it was decided that the President’s chair should be occupied by a professional man, it was offered to him, and it was a subject of great regret to his friends, that the dislike of publicity, to which reference has already been made, prevented his acceptance of it. But he recognised the great value of the Society to the architectural profession, and rejoiced to see its growth and progress.

He had indeed much reason to feel grateful to the Institute for its generous appreciation of his position and labours, and for its hearty support in his time of professional trials. In 1850 he was chosen to receive the Queen’s Gold Medal, and it was presented to him on June 3rd by Earl de Grey, the President, who described most truly and skilfully the peculiar difficulties under which he laboured at the time. In the painful remuneration controversy, the Institute ventured boldly to interfere in defence of the architect, and to send to Mr. Wilson the Resolution which is quoted elsewhere. It was true that he was fighting the battle of the profession, but it was not the less true, that, on this very account, the interference of the Institute was likely to be stigmatised as interested and obtrusive. After his death the council of the Institute suggested his burial in Westminster Abbey, and sent to his widow and family an address of hearty and affectionate condolence.

In fact, the whole course of its official proceedings showed, in his case as in many others, that, in spite of the personal rivalries and of the differences of styles and principles which are found in all professions, and perhaps especially in those of an artistic character, the whole body of architects was ready to show appreciation of work, and willing to give support and sympathy to one who was devoting to his art his time, his talents, and his life.

The younger Architectural Society (the Architectural Museum) also attracted his interest. And in the formation of the Architectural Publication Society he was willing to give all possible aid. He contributed to their Architectural Dictionary an article on Baalbec, and would no doubt have done more, had he lived longer after his retirement from active work.

But, although architectural and artistic societies held the first place in his regard, they by no means engrossed his whole attention. It was certainly characteristic of his mind to be ready in sympathy, and quick in appreciation of all kinds of intellectual pursuits, though literature had much less charm for him than either Science or Art. And, since he felt that architecture was a many-sided profession, in contact not only with all branches of Art, but also with scientific principles and inventions, and all those practical powers which occupy the sphere of “business,” he did not find that devotion to it blunted the edge of his interest in other things. At the “Friday evenings” of the Royal Institution in Albemarle Street he seldom failed to attend. I can well remember the deep interest, with which he entered into the original researches or wide generalisations, so often brought forward there by such men as Faraday and Owen. The general type of mind found in our great scientific men at all times delighted him; for its union of simplicity of aim and enthusiasm for science with profoundness and originality of thought, was the type of genius with which he felt the warmest sympathy. He became in due course a Fellow of the Royal Society; and, valuing the honour greatly, he availed himself of every opportunity of enjoying its privileges. But I do not find that he took any prominent

## part in its action. The same is true of the “British Association.” He

frequently attended its meetings, in the days when it was the fashion to sneer at it, as well as in his later years, when it had become one of the recognised institutions of the country. But here again he never came prominently forward. He was one of the listeners rather than of the speakers on all such occasions.

ROYAL COMMISSION OF 1851.--In 1850 Sir Charles was appointed as a member of the Royal Commission for the Great Exhibition of 1851. The scheme of the building was discussed, and his pencil was immediately busy. He thought of a great building, a polygon of many sides. In the centre was to be a great hall for the larger objects, crowned by a gigantic dome, and surrounded by concentric ranges of rooms for the exhibition of the smaller objects. This, and many other schemes, were all put aside by Sir J. Paxton’s Crystal Palace; and Sir Charles then ventured to offer some suggestions for the improvement of the “grand conservatory.” The chief was to do away with the proposed flat ceilings, and vault both transepts and nave. The recommendation was adopted for the transept only. As to the nave, certain practical difficulties were raised (which have been since disproved by experience at the Crystal Palace at Sydenham), and there the flat ceiling was retained to the great detriment of the internal appearance of the building.[116] He could not share the popular enthusiasm as to its general effect, though he recognised fully its practical convenience and the ingenuity of its contrivance, and confessed it to be adapted most excellently to a temporary construction.

His work as a Royal Commissioner led him to form a judgment on the schemes, which were formed for disposing of the surplus gained by the Exhibition, and so to conceive the designs which have been described in the last chapter. It probably also led to his appointment, in conjunction with his friend Mr. Cockerell, to represent English architecture on the juries of the Exposition Universelle. Being now somewhat less absorbed in professional work, he was able to give considerable time to the work, and spent more than two months in Paris. On this occasion he received the Gold Medal of honour for Architecture, and had an opportunity, which he highly valued, of making or renewing acquaintance with the leading continental architects.

This was the only occasion which gave him any opportunity of acting abroad for the furtherance of his art. But his position, as a leader in his profession, had long been recognised by foreign artistic bodies. In 1842 he received his first foreign honour in being elected into the Academy of St. Luke at Rome; and after this followed a succession of elections to the Academy of St. Petersburg in 1845, of Belgium in 1847, of Prussia in 1849, of Sweden in 1850. Subsequently he was elected into the Academy of Denmark, and into the American Institute. Of these affiliations he was able to avail himself but little, for his days of foreign travel were over. But the honours he could not but value highly. Perhaps he valued them the more, when attacks began to be made upon him at home; for from them, as well as from intercourse with distinguished foreigners in England, he found abundant evidence of the high position which his works occupied in the estimation of continental critics.

On the occasion of the Emperor of Russia’s visit to England, he visited the New Palace under the guidance of the architect, and requested that drawings of its chief elevations might be furnished to him. These were acknowledged in handsome terms, and the acknowledgment was accompanied by a present of the drawings of the Winter Palace at St. Petersburg, and one of those magnificent diamond snuff-boxes which seem to be the established gifts of royalty.

There were indeed few foreign visitors, distinguished either for rank or for artistic eminence, who did not visit and admire his great work, and the _éloge_ of M. Hittorf, read at the meeting of the Five Academies of Paris on August 14th, 1860 (making all allowance for the time and occasion), may be taken as not unfairly representing the general feeling of continental artists.[117]

PROFESSIONAL ARBITRATIONS.--Besides the exercise of influence in public commissions and institutions, an architect who has attained a high rank in his profession, especially at a time when he is beginning to relinquish active work, has an important sphere of exertion in respect of professional arbitrations.

Open competitions are, and long have been, the order of the day. In the decision of the prize much of the dissatisfaction often caused, and the practical injustice often done, arises, not from any partiality or want of ability in the judges, but from the want of practical knowledge of detail, or of the advice of a practical assessor. There are drawbacks to the value of a professional arbitrator; certainly much difficulty and odium attach to his position. But to see the way through a complicated plan, to judge how an attractive elevation will work out, and how far an estimate can possibly be kept to, must certainly require the aid of professional knowledge.

Accordingly, in the latter part of his career, Sir Charles Barry was not unfrequently employed as professional arbiter in public competitions.

In 1845 he was appointed to adjudge the first place in the competition for the Free Church College in Edinburgh--a building which was to occupy one of the finest sites in the city. He bestowed great pains on the adjudication, and gave some suggestions for the improvement of the design. But the award was practically set aside, and the present building erected, from a design for which he was not responsible.

In 1847 he was again employed to examine and report on the drawings of the competitors for the erection of the Glasgow College.

In December 1852 the Town Council of Leeds requested him to undertake the office of professional arbiter in the competition for the erection of their Town Hall. He went into the matter with his usual care and energy, and satisfied himself that the design of Mr. Brodrick, then comparatively a young man, was decidedly the best. On this occasion he had to meet some considerable efforts of local interest in behalf of other competitors; and at one time thought, that he might be obliged to throw up his office, and publish the correspondence. But he stood firm in what he considered to be his duty, and succeeded in securing the erection of a building, which has been since very generally admired.

On all such occasions he showed remarkably his characteristic power of throwing himself, heart and soul, into the work before him. On the process of forming his judgment he bestowed infinite pains, and usually spent some considerable time. But his judgments, when formed, were usually positive and decisive, inclining perhaps occasionally to consider the capacities of a design, more than the standard of its performance, and valuing imperfect promise more highly than finished mediocrity. This is a tendency, which doubtless may be pushed even to the verge of injustice. Still it must be considered as that which has on the whole, more than any other, the double merit of rewarding real talent, and of securing men, who are capable of carrying out and perfecting, in the process of their accomplishment, buildings of real artistic excellence. It is almost needless to add, that he maintained his judgments unflinchingly, and defied all influences which tended to interfere with their independence and effectiveness.

ST. PAUL’S COMMITTEE.--In 1858 Sir Charles was placed upon the Committee for administering the St. Paul’s Cathedral Fund, a fund raised to assist the Dean and Chapter, first, in the maintenance of the Special Evening Services, and next in carrying out, if possible, some worthy system of decoration of the Cathedral. He took the warmest interest in the work. Admiring, as he did, enthusiastically the genius of Sir C. Wren, he felt it a privilege to contribute in the slightest degree to the embellishment of his great work, and its adaptation to the needs of our own time. Here, as in other cases, his only difficulty was to persuade himself to rest contented with that which was immediately practicable, instead of stretching on towards the ideal conceived in his own mind. To some of the changes actually made he gave in consequence but a doubtful acquiescence.

In fact, to the position chosen for the new organ, and the arrangements for the nave congregations depending on that position, he was very strongly opposed--so much so, that at one time he thought of resigning his place on the Commission, and, when he refrained from this, considered it his duty to protest formally against the scheme adopted. His own view was to place the great organ over the western entrance (as is done in some foreign cathedrals), and to have only a small choir organ for use at the eastern end of the church. The great organ in the south transept he considered to interfere with the simplicity, spaciousness, and grandeur of the central area of the Cathedral.

It is needless to say that his objections were most courteously received, and carefully considered, although the Dean and the Committee did not feel able to yield to them. As usual, he took up and expressed his views pretty strongly, but he did not at all lose interest in the proceedings of the Committee, because they were not adopted. In any case it was much to co-operate in throwing open the Cathedral for the first time to an use worthy of its dignity and its magnificence of scale, and (what with him was a great, though, of course, a secondary consideration) in drawing public notice and admiration to the noblest work of our great English architect. He was present at almost every meeting of the Committee, and ventured to offer to Mr. Penrose, the architect of the Dean and Chapter, practical suggestions which were kindly and cordially received.

Only four days before his death (on May 8th, 1860) he had written a paper to the Dean, on the subject of the proposed arrangements;--its handwriting as firm, and its style as vigorous as ever.[118] It is interesting to remember that this, which is (so far as is known) his last professional paper, should have had for its object the preservation and the adornment of a work, which he regarded as one of the finest in the world. To him, as to others, it seemed inexplicable and disgraceful, that, while elaborate restoration is going on of every cathedral and abbey, almost of every remarkable parish church, the cathedral of the metropolis should be neglected, and the appeals for its decoration left almost unanswered. He had no sympathy with the intolerant Gothicism, which would pass over all that is classical, nor could he understand that the absence of the strong local feeling, which has rebuilt Chichester Cathedral, in great measure, by the contributions of Sussex alone, could be a sufficient reason for the neglect of the grandest building in London. He naturally thought of the magnificence of St. Peter’s, and he longed to replace the dreary coldness of St. Paul’s by a splendour which _mutatis mutandis_ should rival its Italian anti-type. Sooner or later it must be that these longings will be realised.

Such is a brief record of the chief of his general public actions; many others there must have been, which have left no trace. He was one of those busy men, who can always find time and thought for subjects cognate to their own special work, though not directly connected with it. When, therefore, he was gone, his loss was felt, in this as in other relations of life, as removing one influence of suggestive originality and of practical soberness of judgment.

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