HUMANITIES PROJECT RELATED TO ARCHITECTURE- ARTS AND CRAFTS STYLE

1. BLACKWELL HOUSE
LOCATION
Blackwell House isan historic house near the townof Bowness-on-Windermere with views
looking over Lake Windermere across the Coniston Fells in South Lakeland, Cumbria, England, New
YorkCity.
Lake Windermere ConistonFells
HISTORY
 Blackwellwas built for the Holt family of Manchester. The head of the family, Sir Edward
Holt, commissioned the respected architect Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott to build the family a
luxurious country retreat in 1898-1900.
 After the demise of their eldest son, the Holts rarely visited the place and thus decided on
leasing it. They also had little incentive to use their money on modernizing a property that
was of little personal interest to them.

2.  During the SecondWorldWar(1939-1945)pupils fromHuyton College in Liverpool were
evacuated there and Blackwellcontinued as a school,finally closing in 1976.
 When the schoolclosed, the historic house was bought by a Yorkshire businessman,
Maurice Bland, wholeased it as officestothe English Conservancy Council, later renamed
English Nature.
 In 1997English Nature moved out and the future of this historic house was suddenly
uncertain. Fearing that this treasure of the Arts & Crafts, which at that time only carried the
lowest grade listing, could be irreparably damaged, the Lakeland Arts Trust stepped in.
 Fortunately, most of the original features of Blackwellwere still in place when it came to the
notice of the Lakeland Arts Trust. It was purchased later in February1999 after various
fund-raising campaigns.
 This took just over a year and involved a great number of specialists in many different
fields, who raised Blackwell’s listing status to the highest level of Grade I.

3. ELEMENTS
The historic house itself makes a strong statement. It is asymmetrical in design and the gables of the
first floorrooms form a complicated roof profile.
Blackwell from the lower terrace.
 ORIENTATION
BlackwellHouse sits proudly above Lake Windermere but instead of facing the Lake, the principal
rooms used by the family are southfacing in order to capture as much sun as possible throughout
the day.
 MATERIALS
Influences from localvernacular architecture are evident in the tall round chimneys and the use of
local slateand sandstone.Rain water is channeled along grooves into ornate lead downpipe.
The initials of EdwardHolt can be seen at the top of the beautifully detailed lead drainpipes.

4.  LANDSCAPE
Outside, gardenterraces withformal planting are found close to the house where the coloursand
fragrances can be appreciated.
In the Holt family’s time the southlawnwas used for croquetand the lowerlawnwastwo grass
tenniscourts.
A ‘HaHa’ is used on the southlawnto avoid forming a visual boundary between the garden and
the views beyond.
 INTERIORS
o Tiles in the fireplaces and Inglenooks,

5. o Carved stone as wellas woodcarving,
o Stainedglass,
o Mosaic floors,
o Studded door and carved lintel,

6. o Peacockfriezeat the top of the wall
o The windowshows delicate stylisedtulips,swayingin the breeze, interwovenwith a flockof
birdswhichre-appearin the decoration throughout the house.
o Alcoves,

8. o Beautiful plasterwork of the White DrawingRoom,

9. o Both natural and artificiallight,to define different areas and to create their distinct
atmospheres.
o Hessianwall hangings,

10. o Textilewall hangings inthe DiningRoom,
o Rowanleavesandberries formthe dominant decorativetheme downstairs,
o THE MAINHALL-The hub of this historic house.
This is not just one room but a succession of rooms, some large, some intimate - “awhole village
of rooms”.
This open-planarrangementis one of Baillie Scott’s particular trademarks.
Part of the room has a double height ceiling, whichcontrasts withthe snug alcovesand window
seats.
The area of the main hall with the lower ceiling has some wonderfulbeaten copper lights that
would originally have hung overa billiard table.

11. BLACKWELL TODAY

12. Blackwellretains many of its original decorative features, including
 a rare hessianwall-hanging inthe Dining Room,
 leaf-shaped doorhandles,
 curious windowcatches,
 spectacular plasterwork,
 stainedglass
 carvedwoodenpaneling
The rooms contain furniture and objects by many of the leading Arts & Crafts designers and
studios-
 metalwork by WAS Benson,
 ceramicsby Pilkingtons and
 Ruskin Potteryand furnitureby Morris & Co., Stanley Webb Davies, Ernest Gimson and
Baillie Scotthimself.
 Recent acquisitions of furnitureby Baillie Scottare on display, including an oak and ebony
inlaid barrel chair withslatted sides, sideboard and a set of dining chairs.
 Blackwelloffers more than most historic houses with several rooms displaying historical
exhibitions thatexplore different aspects of the Arts & Crafts Movement.
Today,Blackwellis borderedby beautiful flowerbedsset against a terrace of York stonepaving,
providing shelter for garden chairs and tables.
On the lowerterracethere is a longsweepof lawnwhere visitors can stroll and take in the
intoxicating beauty of the Lake Districtwhatever the season.
Bibliography- https://flickeringlamps.com/2015/09/19/exploring-blackwell-a-stunning-arts-and-
crafts-house-in-the-heart-of-the-lake-district/
https://www.blackwell.org.uk/blackwell-today
BY- ANIKA MOMIN _ MU1538 _ RIZVI COLLEGE OR ARCHITECTURE