Manuscript Notebook for His History of Art Class At College, with Additions.
[Together with a Copy of Sir Albert Richardson, the Professor, by Simon Houfe]
by Sir Albert Richardson; Simon Houfe
Cover: Hardcover
Publisher: By the Author 1939-40
London Date: 1939
Bound in a 1930's William Edgar & Son datebook of brown paper over boards, consisting of 365 plus pages of lined
paper, with index tabs for days and months. Quite worn and scuffed, the spine is largely gone, yet it is holding
together well enough to continue to house a stuffing of 157 by our count of primarily post-cards with various
reproductions of 'masterpieces' of art. Most of these are pasted or tipped in. On the verso of the title page (which
is also used for a post-card) above another post-card of Raphael's Ansidei Madonna, in manuscript fountain pen, AE
Richardson ASA, Avenue House, Ampthill Beds. St. Catherine's College, Cambridge, 1939-1940, University College London"
This followed by 79 full pages of manuscript notes, most in the first third of the volume. Laid in is an envelope from
the Ministry of Labour and National Service; On His Majesty's Service, addressed in manuscript to: "The Senior Tutor,
Barllett School of Architecture, Scroope Terrace" and stamped Cambridge. Sir Albert Richardson (18801964), a leading
architect, historian, writer, artist, teacher and sometime President of the Royal Academy. Known for his almost
eccentric devotion to the buildings of the past, with a particular passion for the craftsmanship of the late Georgian
era. In 1919 he bought Avenue House in Ampthill, built for a Bedfordshire brewer in 1780 and extended by Henry Holland
in 1792-5. There he lived his dream of past glories for the rest of his life, filling the place with art, artifacts,
and oddities, often receiving visitors in 18th century costume. The present unique volume appears to be an artifact of
his role as a university professor - a compilation of notes and images in a ten year old datebook for lectures on art
history. The notes begin with Painting , The Italian Renaissance and following with sections on Dutch, Spanish,
Flemish, and their major artists and genres from the 16th to 18th centuries. It should now rest on a table somewhere
in the abode, 20 Church Street, Ampthill in 2020, if not in a suitable collection.
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