Architects

Name:

John Buonarotti Papworth

Designation :

Architect

Date of Birth:

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Exact DOB:

24/01/1775

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Date of Death:

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Exact DOD:

16/06/1847

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Bio Notes :

John Buonarotti Papworth was born in Marylebone, London on 24 January 1775, the second son of John Papworth (1750-99) a leading stuccoist who was frequently employed by the Office of Works. At that time Sir William Chambers was leading architect within the Office.

The young John Buonarotti Papworth was destined for a medical career but his drawing skills were spotted by Chambers who advised that he be given training in architecture. Accordingly he was taught drawing by John Deare and basic knowledge of perspective by Thomas Malton. He spent two years in the office of John Plaw and was apprenticed to a builder, Thomas Wapshott, in order to learn the trade and obtain knowledge of the practice side of architecture. He also worked for a prominent firm of decorators, Sheringhams, and assisted Michael Novosielski for a time.

From 1794 he exhibited at the Royal Academy and was admitted to the Schools in December 1798. He was unable to go abroad on a study tour because of the war with France.

His first job was the supervision of the completion of a house in Essex. The architect was Philip Norris for whom Papworth served as clerk of works but subsequently took charge of the job. This attracted work from other clients in the area and his career was launched. In 1803 he took up the freedom of the Clothworkers’ Company and accepted his first pupil, Samuel Benwell who was the nephew of John Plaw his previous employer.

Papworth had a busy practice working on the alterations and decoration of country houses. He was at the same time involved in a number of art and architecture related societies. He served as honorary secretary of the Associated Artists in Watercolours from 1808-10. At this society he exhibited ‘The Hall of Hela’ which he had shown at the Royal Academy the previous year. He was also a member of the Society of Arts and joined the Graphic Society when it was founded in 1833. He was one of the twelve architects who signed the resolution which led to the formation of the Royal Academy. He served as vice-president several times and was elected an honorary member on his retirement in 1846. The following year he was presented with a salver a mark of respect by his pupils and other architects.

Nine volumes of his drawings (now at the RIBA) bear witness to his drawing skill in a range of subjects, architectural and non-architectural. He was friendly with a group of artists and designed the architectural part of at least one painting. He contributed drawings to various publications including four drawings to Peter Coxe’s poem ‘The Social Day’ (1823) and a number of illustrations to Ackerman’s ‘Repository of Arts’ 1809-28. In this appeared a number of coloured plates of London, 76 of which were reprinted as ‘Select Views of London’ under his name in 1816. His publications followed as detailed as follows:

Papworth’s publications:
‘Essay on the Causes of Dry Rot in Timber’ (1803)
The next three re-published plates which originally appeared in ‘Ackerman’s Repository of Arts’:
‘Select Views of London’ (1816)
‘Architectural Hints’ (1813 and 1814)
‘Architectural Hints’ second series (1816 and 1817) republished as ‘Rural Residences consisting of a series of Designs for Cottages, small villas and other ornamental buildings’ (1818, 2nd edition 1832.)
‘Hints on Ornamental Gardening’ (1823). This first appeared as a series of designs for garden building which appeared between 1819 and 1820.
‘Poetical Sketches of Scarborough’ (1813). These were illustrated by the drawings of James Green; Papworth wrote fourteen of the twenty-one chapters.
Britton & Pugin, ‘Public Buildings of London’ (1825-8) . Papworth was responsible for several of the descriptions.
Papworth, J B (ed) (1826) Sir William Chambers, ‘Treatise on the Decorative Part of Civil Architecture’ and added copious notes
Papworth, J B (ed.) Sir William Chambers, ‘An Essay on the Principles of Design in Architecture, with nine plates, illustrative of Grecian Architecture’
‘ The benefits resulting to the Manufactures of a Country from a well-directed cultivation of architecture, and of the art of ornamental Design’ which was read at the RIBA in 1835 and was published in the Transactions in 1835.

Papworth was responsible for the design of a range of manufactured objects and it was an important feature of his practice. Businessmen and industrialists were important clients. He designed furniture, silverware, glassware and ornamental plate such as the salver presented to Arthur Onslow in 1816 for his services in Parliament. He designed a glass throne for the Shah of Persia; the figurehead and other decorations of the ‘London Engineer’ paddle-steamer, the first paddle steamer to ply on the Thames below London Bridge; the cover decorations of the ‘Forget-me-Knot Annual’ (1825-30); three blinds with Greek decoration for the blinds of the Phoenix Bank in New York and a Gothic lantern for Eaton Hall, Cheshire. He also designed the monument to Colonel Gordon at Waterloo field which took the form of a broken column, which was the first to be designed with this element.

Around this time the manufacture of glass was being improved and Papworth designed a variety of shop fronts. He was also a pioneer in the use of iron-framed construction for warehouses. He also turned his hand to landscape gardening and town planning and in the latter field contributed schemes in Cheltenham, at the Brockwell estate in Dulwich and the formation of St Bride’s Avenue providing a view of Wren’s steeple from Fleet Street.

Although Papworth provided three sets of designs for a place at Cannstatt for Wilhelm I, King of Wurttemberg, these were not carried out. Some of these designs were exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1823 and 1827. However his scheme for laying out the park at Cannstatt was partially implemented.

In 1815 he produced a design for a Tropheum to commemorate the victory at Waterloo which was highly regarded by his contemporaries and his friends hailed him as a second Michelangelo and it was for this reason that he added the name Buonarotti. The design was rejected by the Royal Academy.

In 1835 Papworth gave evidence to the select committee on arts and manufactures and in 1836 he was appointed director of the Government School of Design. He was responsible for the detailed organisation of the school. However the school closed after 15 months due to lack of funding.

Papworth retired from professional life in 1846 because of ill-health. He moved from London to St Neot’s in Huntingdonshire to a house which he had designed for his aunt a number of years before. He died there on 16 June 1847. He was married twice, first in 1801 to Jane, daughter of Thomas Wapshott his former master, and second in 1817 to Mary Anne, the eldest daughter of William Say, a mezzotint engraver by whom he had two sons and one daughter.

There are several portraits of Papworth: one painted by James Ward in 1813, another painted by James Green in 1814 and engraved by William Say; a third was painted in 1833 by F R Say.

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Additional Notes

The following private or business addresses are associated with this person:

Business Addresses2 classic

Address	Class	Date From	Date From Type	Date To	Date To Type	Notes
London England	Business

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The following individuals were employed or trained by this person (click on an item to view details):

Employees or Pupils2 classic

Name	Name Link	Date From	Date To	Position	Notes
James Thomson	202562	In year 1814	In year 1821	Apprentice
James Thomson	202562	In year 1821	Before 1847	Assistant

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This person was involved with the following buildings or structures from the date specified (click on an item to view details):

Buildings and Designs2 classic

Building Name	Date Started	Town, District or Village	City or County	Country	Notes
Broomhall	In year 1827	Limekilns, Dunfermline	Fife	Scotland	Plans provided for ideas for alterations
Cally Estate, Cally Palace and other estate buildings	In year 1833	Gatehouse of Fleet	Kirkcudbrightshire	Scotland	Recasting
Glasserton Parish Church	In year 1836	Glasserton	Wigtownshire	Scotland	North aisle and tower added

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The following books contain references to this person:

Bib ref classic

Author	Title	Date	Publisher	Part	Notes
Colvin, H M	A Biographical Dictionary of British Architects 1600-1840	1995	New Haven and London: Yale University Press	3rd edition

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Basic Biographic Details

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Employees or Pupils

Employees or Pupils2 classic

Buildings and Designs

Buildings and Designs2 classic

References

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