Benjamin H. Latrobe :: essays research papers fc

Benjamin H. Latrobe was born in 1764 in Fulneck, England. He was raised in England. As a young man Latrobe was taught at the Morvian school in Fulneck. This was where Latrobe received a base for his advance education. After Morvian, he transferred to Nieski school in Germany. There he received an impressive education. Which was composed of a large-minded curriculum. He was taught in every(prenominal) the liberal arts and as well as classical and modern languages. Latrobe started his career training under Englands most renowned engineer of the twenty-four hour period John Smeaton. Under Smeatons teachings Latrobe gained a strong grasp of technical and theoretical English civil engineering and meticulous draughtsmanship (Carter 1981, 1-2). Latrobes interests in engineering soon guide him to develop an interest in architecture. Latrobe decided to pursue his interest in architecture. He decided to work with S.R. Cockrell and become his apprentice. While Latrobe worked along with C ockrell he gained further experience and rapid advancement in architecture. Latrobe did many side jobs designing public works where he also gained experience and individuality. During Latrobes partnership with Cockrell he also met other renowned architects of the time. Two of which were Gorge Dance and John Soane. Both of these architects were very influential to Latrobes own work. In fact, all three architects were very influential. They all helped mold and create Latrobes architectural look. During this advancing time period in architecture there were mainly three distinct styles of architecture. The first style was honest-to-goodness school. This style was strict Palladianism which was inspired by Palladio himself. The second school was Roman in origin and had a mess of functional space and had a lot of decorative detail. Latrobe found both these styles to be over rich and also to elaborate in detail. Latrobe found the Third school to be the most attractive. This style was som etimes called the "Plain Style," which was characterized by simplicity, geometric power and rationalism. With all these great teachers and mentors. Latrobe was able to develop his own style which would start a new establish of architecture and create the Greek revival (Carter 1981, 12). &9Latrobe decided to move to the United States. With him be brought his architectural gift and curiosity. He was very implicated in the US and he studied its history, its legends, the dress and manners of its people, and of course its architecture. Geological formations, waterfalls, the courses of rivers, and the nature of the soil and terrain were all carefully observed.