Jefferson’s Classical Orders at the University of Virginia, with Calder Loth
9,229
Published 2021-04-27
This course is presented by the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art, a national nonprofit promoting the practice, understanding, and appreciation of classical design. To watch more online classes like this one, or to become a member and support our educational mission, visit www.classicist.org/ .
About the Course:
“Specimens for the Architectural Lectures” is how Thomas Jefferson described the intent of his use of different versions of the classical orders for his design of the University of Virginia. Not only did his scheme result in a visually striking complex, it formed a unique medium for imparting architectural knowledge to its students. Even 200 years later Jefferson’s “Academical Village” continues to be an effective means for teaching both basics and nuances of the classical language. To this end, Calder Loth’s video lecture offers insights on each of the complex’s orders and relates them to the published sources Jefferson used for reference. Included in the presentation are the ancient structures from which the orders and their details were derived. Also revealed are some of our architect-president’s personal touches to the orders.
Learning Objectives
1. Learn the distinction between ancient and modern classical architectural orders.
2. Learn how Jefferson mined published sources on classical architecture for material to employ in his university scheme.
3. Learn how Jefferson applied the classical language to visually enrich a new concept in university design.
4. Observe how Jefferson’s creative use of the classical orders served a didactic function and can still do so today.
5. Consider where the ancient examples of the orders used by Jefferson might be seen in other classical works.
6. Gain an appreciation of the different versions of the classical orders and how they can serve as a design resource for contemporary classicism.
Course Navigation and Review Questions:
As you watch the video, you can browse by subject using the course outline and timestamps below. As you progress through the video, you can follow along with optional (ungraded) review questions here to help assess your understanding of the material: www.classicist.org/classical-orders-university-of-…
0:00 Introduction and Jefferson's Original Sources for Design
07:35 Pavilion I
11:56 Pavilion II
18:35 Pavilion III
22:09 Pavilion IV
26:30 Pavilion V
30:20 Pavilion VI
31:59 Pavilion VII
34:18 Pavilion VIII
39:56 Pavilion IX
44:42 Pavilion X
50:05 The Rotunda & Conclusions
Receive credit for this course:
Viewers may receive 1.5 AIA CES Learning Units|Elective and 1.5 credits towards the Certificate in Classical Architecture by watching this video and subsequently scoring at least 70% on a summative assessment that tests your understanding of the material. Take the assessment by clicking here: www.classicist.org/summative-assessment-jefferson-…
About the Instructor:
Calder Loth is Senior Architectural Historian for the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and a member of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art Advisory Council. He was the recipient of the 2010 ICAA Board of Directors Honor Award and the 2017 Virginia AIA Honor Award for significant contributions to the understanding of Virginia's built environment. He is the author of Congressional Resolution 259 honoring the 500th anniversary of the birth of Andrea Palladio, passed unanimously.
Sponsors for this course:
Thank You to our Lead Sponsor for Continuing Education, Uberto Construction
A Special Thanks to our Presenting Sponsor of Online Education: Douglas C. Wright Architects
All Comments (14)
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I was a carpenter for about 45 years and I worked with a lot of these columns and capitols, various details we installed on houses, but I never really knew where the idea of them came from. It's very interesting to see how all these things evolved over time. Great videos. Thanks for uploading.
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We want more from Calder Loth.
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Calder Loth is amazing, more lectures, please Dr. Loth!
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Thanks for these videos. I appreciate this so much. No wheres else can I get this information, the exposure to such topics has invigorated a passion in me for classical architecture. Thank you, thank you, and thank you!
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Here in Marin County, California we used to have the “Marin Art and Garden Center”, which featured, among other things, Jeffersonian serpentine brick walks around it. They are much more stable than conventional brick walks and beautifully frame plantings inside and outside of the walks. It was a lovely facility for garden shows and other public activities, but they eventually closed it and redeveloped it, the brick walls are gone, too. Probably the owners didn’t feel they were getting enough money for the very pricey location where it was built, on some of the highest-priced land in a very expensive county. What a shame!
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This is a great video, thanks!
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As a Virginian, THIS is the Virginia I love 🎩
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26:30 Pavilion V. I'd expect him to explain why it's a colonnade vs a portico.
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The Pavilion II frieze swag has New World flora, too, not Old World, incorporating pumpkins, other squashes and possibly maize (it’s difficult to be sure viewing it on Youtube).
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Been trying to model an accurate Corinthian leaf in SketchUp for the past month...@)
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@ClassicistORG I have loved these videos on architectural history. Would you be willing and/or able to do one covering byzantine architecture, or at the very least a in-depth coverage of the Hagia Sophia? Thanks!
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30:00 I know nothing but all of these photos of the elevations of the pavilions look to me like they would be wood columns, probably cued by the brick buildings which they're in front of. I would think that homes, which these resemble, usually have wood columns. But we see that the capitals are carved from stone in Italy in many cases. On the larger scale, I'd expect stone columns, but in isolation they feel like they'd be wood, to me.
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Jefferson wasn’t much of an architect was he? Commodity maybe, but lacking firmness or delight!
