Historical Figures Codexery

Robert Adam

British neoclassical architect who developed the Adam Style.

Robert Adam

Attributed to George Willison · via Wikipedia: Robert Adam · Public domain

He designed interiors, fittings, and houses, often remodelling existing buildings and contributing to Edinburgh's townscape.[1] From roughly 1760 until his death, Robert Adam was at the forefront of the initial classical revival movement in both England and Scotland.[2] Between 1768 and 1774, Adam was the parliamentary representative for Kinross-shire.[3]

Quick Facts

Born
3 July 1728
Birthplace
Kirkcaldy, Fife, Scotland
Died
3 March 1792
Education
University of Edinburgh
Place of death
London, England
Burial place
Westminster Abbey
Style
Neoclassical
Father
William Adam

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

He attended the Royal High School, Edinburgh from age six, learning Latin.[4] His studies were interrupted by the Jacobite rising of 1745, and after a serious illness he joined his brother John as apprentice to his father in 1746.[5][6][7] He returned to Britain in 1758 and set up business in London with James, focusing on complete schemes for decoration and furnishing.[8] Adam died on 3 March 1792 at his London home after a long illness.[9]

Robert Adam, the second son of architect William Adam, came into the world on 3 July 1728 at Gladney House, located in Kirkcaldy, Fife.[4] During the autumn of 1743, Adam enrolled at the University of Edinburgh, where his chosen subjects included mathematics and anatomy.[5] The initial significant project for the Adam Brothers involved decorating the principal state apartments at Hopetoun House, after which they undertook Dumfries House as their first newly constructed building.[10] A plot of land next to the Thames was acquired by the brothers in 1768 for the Adelphi terrace development; by 1772 this venture had saddled them with enormous debts.[11][12]

What the cited sources add

His publication of drawings and text on the palace had a profound effect on neoclassical Western architecture and his own work.[13] Influences from that study were seen rapidly in Adam's Adelphi buildings in London.[13]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Adam silver (1953). Victoria & Albert Museum, London. Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO), p. 1.; Norwich, "Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Arts", Oxford University Press, 1990, p. 3 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pevsner, p. 237 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Waterston, "Former Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002: Biographical Index", The Royal Society of Edinburgh, July 2006 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: James, Jude, "Kirkcaldy: A History & Celebration of the Town", Francis Frith Collection, 2005, p. 60; "Adam, Robert (1728–1792), architect", 2004; Fleming, p. 76; Graham, p. 2 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Graham, p. 27 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Fleming, pp. 79–80 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Fleming, p. 81 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Roth, p. 397; Roth, p. 402 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Graham, Roderick (2009) Arbiter of Elegance: A Biography of Robert Adam, Birlinn, , pp. 328–329 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Fleming, pp. 85–86 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Steven Parissien, "Adam Style", Phaidon, 1992, p. 43–44; Steven Parissien, "Adam Style", Phaidon, 1992, p. 43–44 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  12. Wikipedia, "Robert Adam" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Steven Parissien, "Adam Style", Phaidon, 1992, p. 43–44 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  13. C.M. Hogan, "Diocletian's Palace", The Megalithic Portal, A. Burnham ed, 6 Oct 2007. facts only, no text reused. megalithic.co.uk

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Robert Adam (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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