We are still visiting Oxford, England, although unfortunately we are scheduled to leave in a few days. We managed to see the interior of the Sheldonian Theatre today, Christopher Wren's first major building commission completed in 1667. Wren based his design on Roman amphitheaters, and thus the Sheldonian was the first building in Oxford to be modeled directly from a structure dating from classical antiquity. He had to adapt this form to the use of a modern theatre where academic ceremonies would be conducted. One required deviation was that of a roof (Roman theatres were open to the sky), and Wren solved this problem with his typical mathematical expertise by creating trusses that spanned 70 ft. with no intermediate supports. These trusses were hidden from view by a ceiling that was painted by Robert Streater with allegorical scenes surrounding a central area of clouds and blue sky. The exterior of this building (although its main facade resembles illustrations found in Vetruvius) is thought not to be altogether successful. (This may have been partially a result of the tightening of funds as the building was completed.) What gives this building much of its interest, though, is that it is the earliest work of a man who would come to be known as England's greatest classical architect.
This view (above) is taken from the cupola of the Sheldonian Theatre. You can see why Oxford is often referred to at the "city of spires".
We are leaving England today, but 0ur posts from Oxford would not be complete without a little mention of St. Antony's College (where we've been staying along with some American study-abroad students). St. Antony's College was established in 1950 as a graduate college of international studies, and is situated in North Oxford. Its buildings include the former Holy Trinity Convent, which has a beautiful Gothic Revival chapel designed by John Loughborough Pearson that now houses the College's library. The firm Howell, Killick, Partridge, and Amis added the Hilda Bess building in the late 1960's, which houses a dining hall and commons rooms. This concrete-framed building is a reinterpetation of the age-old communal collegiate building, and despite its rather brutalist exterior is quite nice inside with a large dining hall lit by hooded windows. The Architects Design Partnership added the Nissan Centre for Japanese Studies in 1993, a carefully detailed building influenced by Japanese architecture and Frank Lloyd Wright. Also interesting are the unrealized designs for this college by Oscar Niemeyer, which were abandoned because of the economic recession of the 1970's.
