2006

British Architectural Library acquires Charles Robert Cockerell's tribute to Christopher Wren

Date:

28 November 2007

Press office contact:

Dorelia Baird-Smith
T: +44 (0)207 307 3884
E: dorelia.baird-smith@inst.riba.org

28 March 2006

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Trust is delighted to announce that the British Architectural Library (BAL) has purchased "A Tribute to Sir Christopher Wren", the most important drawing by Charles Robert Cockerell RA ever to come to the market. The drawing brings together all the buildings that in the early 19th century were believed to be by Wren into one vast urban landscape.

The BAL purchased the drawing at Sotheby's auction house at a cost of £98,800, and gratefully acknowledges that the acquisition was made possible by grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund (£37,200), The Art Fund (£31,026) (the UK's leading independent art charity) and the balance from the British Architectural Library Trust and the RIBA Drawings Endowment Fund. Located in the RIBA Library's Drawings Collection at the V&A, the drawing will join work by both Cockerell and Wren already held in the collection.
 
Exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts in 1838, the drawing, which is watercolour over pencil, sparked a reappraisal of Wren's work that led to his being regarded until well into the 20th century as the most important architect England had produced. The popular revival of his style, christened by Sir Edwin Lutyens, the "Wrennaisance", left its mark on every high street in the country. This picture was extensively reproduced from the late 19th century in popular books and encyclopaedias.
 
Charles Robert Cockerell (1788 – 1863) was the first recipient of the Royal Gold Medal in 1848 and the first professional architect to serve as President of the RIBA from 1860 – 1862. He was regarded as one of the leading architects of his day and his portrait is carved on the podium of the Albert Memorial as a representative of Victorian architecture.
 
The RIBA's Drawings & Archives Collections hold a large body of Cockerell's work, including drawings, letters and diaries. His best known buildings are the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, the branches of the Bank of England in Manchester and Liverpool and the interior of St. George's Hall, Liverpool.
 
Dr. Irena Murray, Sir Bannister Fletcher Director of the BAL, said:
 
"Following recent acquisitions such as the Hawksmoor model of Easton Neston House last year and the codex by Giovanni Battista da San Gallo of Raphael's circle earlier this year, the purchase of this famous document of English architectural history confirms the RIBA's British Architectural Library as a collection of national and international significance."
 
Sue Bowers, Regional Manager of the London Region, Heritage Lottery Fund, said:
 
"The Heritage Lottery Fund is delighted to have helped secure Cockerell's tribute to Wren, ensuring the painting can be enjoyed by as wide an audience as possible. This project will really bring the painting to life enabling everyone to explore an important part of London's architectural heritage."
 
David Barrie, Director of The Art Fund, said:
 
"Cockerell's tribute to Sir Christopher Wren is a passionate celebration of Wren's genius, and one which had a profound influence on the Wren renaissance. The Art Fund wholeheartedly supported the purchase of this tour de force, which has found the perfect home at the RIBA."

 

Notes to editors

1. For further information and/or images contact: Dorelia Adeane in the RIBA Press Office - 020 7307 3884 or dorelia.adeane@inst.riba.org|
 
2. The RIBA Trust manages the cultural assets of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), including the internationally recognised collections of the British Architectural Library (BAL). It is the UK's national architecture centre, delivering the RIBA Awards and RIBA Stirling Prize (live on Channel 4); the Royal Gold Medal; International and Honorary Fellowships; Architecture Week (with Arts Council England and the Architecture Centre Network); a full programme of lectures, exhibitions, tours and other events; and an education programme.
 
3. The drawing is watercolour over pencil, heightened with bodycolour and with scratching out. It is on two sheets, joined, formerly inscribed on an old label: "A Tribute to the memory of Sir Christopher Wren / being a collection of the principal Works../C.R Cockerell Arch R.A."
 
4. The British Architectural Library Trust exists to raise funds to support the RIBA British Architectural Library outside its core activities. It was the body charged with raising the £5.5 million to enable the British Architectural Library's Drawings & Archives Collections to move to the V&A and the creation there of the Architecture Gallery, part of the V&A+RIBA Architecture Partnership.
 
5. The Heritage Lottery Fund enables communities to celebrate, look after and learn more about our diverse heritage. From our great museums and historic buildings to local parks and countryside or recording and celebrating traditions, customs and history, HLF grants open up our nation's heritage for everyone to enjoy. We have awarded grants totalling £3.3 billion to more than 18,000 projects, including almost £750 million in London alone.
 
6. The Art Fund is the UK's leading independent art charity. It offers grants to help UK museums and galleries enrich their collections and campaigns widely on behalf of museums and their visitors It has 80,000 members. Since its foundation in 1903, The Art Fund has helped UK public collections acquire over 850,000 works of art, ranging from Bronze Age treasures to contemporary works of art.
 
7. In 2005 The Art Fund offered over £4.1 million to museums and galleries and distributed 12 gifts and bequests. Independent of government, The Art Fund was at the forefront of the campaign for free admission in 2001 and the campaign to save the Macclesfield Psalter in 2005. In April The Art Fund unveiled one of the most significant projects in its history – a permanent 'Skyspace' at Yorkshire Sculpture Park by James Turrell. In May The Art Fund published key findings from its groundbreaking survey of UK museum and gallery acquisitions, which showed 70% of UK museums now acquire objects mainly or solely by gift. The key findings are available at www.artfund.org/news/428| Visit the charity's website at www.artfund.org|.

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