Artists' Houses in London, 1764-1914 (edition 1994)

Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0859679624, Hardcover)

During the 150 years prior to 1914, British artists of all kinds, like their European counterparts, enjoyed esteem and prosperity on a steadily mounting scale. "Artists' Houses in London" reveals how the more ambitious painters and sculptors based in England's capital came to build an extraordinary range of workplaces in response to their rising status. These dwellings, the Victorian studio-house in particular, captivated a society increasingly receptive to artistic creativity. Giles Walkely brings to account numerous colourful examples, reanimating the once familiar artists' quarters of the West End by virtue of a commentary which highlights former local luminaries such as Leighton, Whistler, Alma Tadema and Herkomer. Designs by the most progressive contemporary architects, among them Webb, Shaw, Godwin and Voysey, are compared with previously unknown works by less celebrated figures. Here are the bright confections of the "Queen Anne" Revival, the passionate extremes of the Aesthetic School, Arts and Crafts models for the dream-houses of the end-of-century Free Style, and the inspiration for "l'esprit nouveau", yet to arrive. Complemented by 180 illustrations and a comprehensive gazetteer, this is a useful history, rich in social detail. "Artists' Houses in London" makes an informative guide to the most talked-about domestic architecture, interior design and popular art of the day.