Once again we take a brief moment to talk about one of the books in our collection; I have wanted this for some time, but was only recently able to obtain it on Ebay for a low price. Always a great fan of Country Life, I collected many issues years ago when it was commonly available at the local news stand (I never could bring myself to spring for an annual subscription) and I still keep some of these scattered about in the house. Lacking more recent issues, I was happy to report a successful effort to grab a single copy at Heathrow before we returned home from our recent UK trip.

I finished reading this book right before we left, and though it certainly relates a lively and interesting story of the magazine’s history and significance, it does an excellent job of weaving that history into a vivid panorama of Britain during the last 100 (now 120) years. It’s hard for me to imagine that this book has actually been out for so long; nevertheless, the subject matter is as essential today as it was in 1997. With a fairly substantial production run, it is still easily available from online booksellers such as Amazon and Abebooks.

As one might expect, the photography—which was primarily pulled from the magazine’s archives—is excellent. The vintage black-and-white images are so expressive and so “of their time” that they capture the feeling of their era in a way that modern color photography cannot.

Once surprising aspect of the book, and this is a tribute to Sir Roy Strong, is that it is an easy and comfortable read; though it is large and fairly substantial, the average reader would be able to get through it straightaway. The author pulls no punches in his observations regarding the magazine and its editorial positions; though helpful in preserving the country’s heritage and great estates in its early decades, he describes them as outdated and reactionary in the post war period.

Controversies aside, the book provides a useful record of the magazine’s history and outlines its role as a cultural icon. Outlining a long list of editors and contributors (including Strong himself) and surveying 100 years of social change, editorial policies, preservation issues and matters of taste, this book provides a great insight into a central period of English architectural and social history.

Country Life, 1897-1997  An English Arcadia
Hardcover: 128 pages
ISBN-10: 0752210548
ISBN-13: 978-0752210544
Product Dimensions:  11.8 x 9.2 x 1 inches

Things have been quiet for some time, as I have become involved in a local historic preservation project as well as ongoing work at my own house. But over the coming weeks I’ll try to fill you in on the highlights of my recent trip to the UK, where I was able to take in a number of memorable sights and enjoy a fair amount of good pub ale.

A grand staircase at Hampton Court Palace

To simplify things, we based our stay in London; I had initially planned to book accommodations in three different cities, but there was simply so much to see—and with a pre-booked single day-trip via Eurostar train to Paris—we figured it would just be simpler to stay in one place, which in this case was a wonderful small hotel in Belgravia.

Liberty of London. This department store is just as amazing on the interior.

We took in all the obligatory London sites—Westminster Abbey, The Tower of London, St. Paul’s, Tower Bridge, etc. as well as personal favorites like Shakespeare’s Globe and Liberty of London. Half-day jaunts to Windsor Castle and Hampton Courts were also on the list—as was a visit to Highclere, which my daughter requested, being a fan of Downton Abbey. Not my first choice for a country house tour; I would have preferred something more in the vein of Wightwick Manor or Cragside…but that must wait for a future visit.

The Thames at Windsor. Had a lovely lunch at the restaurant across the way.

I will get into more detail in follow-up posts. Suffice it to say that the trip was all that I had expected; the London Underground was superb and so easy-to-use, the pubs were picturesque and delightful, the people were friendly and the architecture was sublime. Everything you could hope for.

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As part of it's ongoing series of 360-degree views of outstanding architecure, The Guardian/Observer features the work of Rowan Moore, who introduces a spectacular interactive 360-degree panoramic view of this classic example of the Jacobean long gallery.
CLICK HERE OR ON THE PHOTO TO VIEW THE 360-PANORAMA.


The Guardian/Observer describes it thus:
"A smallish but satisfying example is in Chastleton House in the Cotswolds, built by a rich wool merchant (or possibly lawyer), whose family later dissipated his wealth and so were unable to alter the original building. Nikolaus Pevsner called the decoration of Chastleton "blatantly nouveau riche, even barbaric, uninhibited by any consideration of insipid good taste", but it now it looks gentle and charming, softened by wobbles in wood and plaster and the fall of light. It is also more bare than it would have been, in the absence of its original artworks and tapestries."

.
As part of it's ongoing series of 360-degree views of outstanding architecure, The Guardian/Observer features the work of Rowan Moore, who introduces a spectacular interactive 360-degree panoramic view of this classic example of the Jacobean long gallery.
CLICK HERE OR ON THE PHOTO TO VIEW THE 360-PANORAMA.


The Guardian/Observer describes it thus:
"A smallish but satisfying example is in Chastleton House in the Cotswolds, built by a rich wool merchant (or possibly lawyer), whose family later dissipated his wealth and so were unable to alter the original building. Nikolaus Pevsner called the decoration of Chastleton "blatantly nouveau riche, even barbaric, uninhibited by any consideration of insipid good taste", but it now it looks gentle and charming, softened by wobbles in wood and plaster and the fall of light. It is also more bare than it would have been, in the absence of its original artworks and tapestries."

The Long Gallery at Haddon Hall.

In practical terms, a Long Gallery was a type of room popular in great Elizabethan or Jacobean houses of the prodigy type, sometimes the width of a façade, as at Hatfield House, (1607–11), and Hardwick Hall, (1590–7). Usually well lit by means of large, lavish windows and sumptuously appointed with chimney-surrounds, panelling, and finely-moulded ceilings, it was an extrordinary environment for the times, primarily devoted to hanging tapestries and portraits, entertainment, games and even excercise in bad weather. It was chiefly during this period that the long gallery became the primary reception room in many great houses.
When we chose The Long Gallery as the name of our website, we were really looking at it as a metaphor. The long gallery of an Elizabethan house was used as a place of delight, and as a place for prominently displaying art and other valued objects so that the owner might take joy in them and show them off to others. In essence, it was a special place, created to feature and highlight all that was especially fine, interesting, or worthy of comment and observation.

Our website was developed to fulfill much the same role. Whether it is Medieval, Elizabethan, Jacobean, or Victorian Revival architecture, style, art, or design (or relevant history) - we seek to bring you the best examples from the past and the present. Whether you're protecting and preserving a building of this type, trying to recreate the feeling of the period in your home, or incorporating something of this period into your lifestyle, we want to be a resource for you. We hope you'll visit us often and walk through our Long Gallery to see what we have found.

In this post, we wanted to share some photographic examples of various long galleries that we have come across. We hope you will enjoy them. If you have any examples you would like to share with us, please send them along to us.

MS

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In practical terms, a Long Gallery was a type of room popular in great Elizabethan or Jacobean houses of the prodigy type, sometimes the width of a façade, as at Hatfield House, (1607–11), and Hardwick Hall, (1590–7). Usually well lit by means of large, lavish windows and sumptuously appointed with chimney-surrounds, panelling, and finely-moulded ceilings, it was an extrordinary environment for the times, primarily devoted to hanging tapestries and portraits, entertainment, games and even excercise in bad weather. It was chiefly during this period that the long gallery became the primary reception room in many great houses.


When we chose The Long Gallery as the name of our website, we were really looking at it as a metaphor. The long gallery of an Elizabethan house was used as a place of delight, and as a place for prominently displaying art and other valued objects so that the owner might take joy in them and show them off to others. In essence, it was a special place, created to feature and highlight all that was especially fine, interesting, or worthy of comment and observation.


Our website was developed to fulfill much the same role. Whether it is Medieval, Elizabethan, Jacobean, or Victorian Revival architecture, style, art, or design (or relevant history) - we seek to bring you the best examples from the past and the present. Whether you're protecting and preserving a building of this type, trying to recreate the feeling of the period in your home, or incorporating something of this period into your lifestyle, we want to be a resource for you. We hope you'll visit us often and walk through our Long Gallery to see what we have found.

In this post, we wanted to share some photographic examples of various long galleries that we have come across. We hope you will enjoy them. If you have any examples you would like to share with us, please send them along to us.

MS

A friend just sent this to me, along with a number of similar "dog-costume" photos - as part of a collection titled "Why Dogs Bite People." They were all pretty hilarious, but this particular example really made me laugh out loud, because it was unique and so brilliantly done.


If I had a dog, I'd be tempted to have him run around the house looking like this all the time...