Robert Adam was a Scottish architect and designer. He was born in 1728 and died in 1792. He was highly prolific and successful in both Scotland and England, he supervised the furnishing of his buildings down to the last detail, creating a distinctively elegant and highly influential style of interior decoration. In 1812 the architect Sir John Soane wrote: 'the light and elegant ornaments, the varied compartments in the ceilings of Mr Adam, imitated from Ancient Works in the Baths and Villas of the Romans, were soon applied in designs for chairs, tables, carpets, and in every other species of furniture.' Robert Adam gave work to a number of outstanding craftsmen, and Angelica Kauffmann and her husband Antonio Zucchi were among the artists who painted decorative panels for his interiors (examples by Zucchi are at 20 Portman Square, London, formerly the Courtauld Institute of Art). About 9,000 of Adam's drawings are in the Soane Museum in London. Research Robert Adam
Kirkcaldy is a seaport town and since 1450 a royal burgh on the Firth of Forth, in Fife, Scotland. Its main industries include floor coverings, paper, coarse textiles, and whisky. It was the birthplace of the economist Adam Smith and the architect Robert Adam. The town developed from a settlement built around an ancient fort. Research Kirkcaldy
Georgian is a period of English architecture, furniture making, and decorative art between 1714 and 1830. The architecture is mainly Classical in style, although external details and interiors were often rich in Rococo carving. Furniture at this time was often made of mahogany and satinwood, and mass production became increasingly common; designers included Thomas Chippendale, George Hepplewhite, and Thomas Sheraton. The silver of this period is particularly fine, and ranges from the earlier, simple forms to the ornate, and from the Neo-Classical style of Robert Adam to the later, more decorated pre-Victorian taste. Georgian architecture features columns inspired by Classical designs, and using the Doric Order, Ionic Order and Corinthian Order. Front doors are typically panelled, large, with columns or decorations either side and a semi-circular window above. Windows were typically sash windows, tall and well proportioned, with wooden glazing bars and equal sized glass panes. Research Georgian
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Robert Adam
