If you follow this blog for any length of time, you’ll very soon become acquainted with my extreme obsession with everything Jefferson. There are a lot of things you can say about the man; Great Writer, Great Scientist, Great Inventor, Great Philosopher, Great Statesman, Great President, Great Naturalist, Great Musician, etc. But one thing you can say about him that resonates particularly well with us here at Basis is Great Architect, Great Designer, and Great Decorator. Behold Monticello, the greatest private home built in America. (Note to haterz: I said Fallingwater was the most beautiful, not the greatest).
It took Jefferson decades to build Monticello. He kept changing his plans, re-working them to incorporate new duties, new family, and new architectural models and ideas imported from his travels and extensive reading all over the western world (fun Jefferson fact; Jefferson’s personal library, donated to the government, was the foundation of the Library of Congress. The man was well-read) . He especially loved the dome in conjunction with Georgian symmetry.
He would use the dome again in his design for the world famous Rotunda at the University of Virginia, the “House that Jefferson built.” He also designed the original classrooms, grounds, and housing. The man was a stud.
This is Jefferson’s bedroom. He cut out a space in the wall for his actual bed, neatly bisecting the room into two spheres; his office and living quarters. Visible is his magnificent desk, itself featuring some extremely cool design. (That’s another post. Oh, you think this is all the Jefferson you’re getting this week? Please.)
Another gorgeous room. The furniture, the french doors, the busts and views; really breathtaking in person. A trip to Monticello is never a wasted trip, btw.
Here, finally, an aerial view of this part of the property:
Monticello, a regal and lyrical name, means “Little Mountain” in Italian. The man spoke languages.
Tune in on Monday for more Jefferson fetish objects! See you then! Oh, and just because we’re such pals, here’s some UVA architecture titillation!
