We all have an idea of what constitutes ‘classicism’ but how did it arrive in Britain and what influenced its various iterations within interior design over the centuries? Through a brief history of classicism in British interior design, we will explore the origins and evolution of the differing forms of classical design, as well as considering which specific decorative vocabularies belong to which era; for example, the Jonesian, Baroque, Neo-Palladian, Rococo and Neo-Classical. During the Regency Period of the early nineteenth century – just prior to the Gothic revival – classicism culminated in the attenuated and clean forms of John Soane’s work. We will consider Soane’s decorative devices, so often used within small, efficient spaces, and his preoccupation with interior decorative light through the use of mirror glass, coloured glass, fenestration and the power of shadow.

Dr Frances Sands: Fran is Curator of Drawings and Books at Sir John Soane’s Museum, where she has worked since 2010 in two different roles. She is responsible for the Soane Museum’s collection of 30,000 drawings and 7,000 books, as well as the Museum’s research library and drawings cataloguing projects. Furthermore, she is heavily involved in producing exhibitions using material from the Soane Museum collection. Fran is also a Trustee of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain and of the Mausolea and Monuments Trust.