Christopher Wren’s Designs for St. Paul’s Cathedral
Analyse the evolution of Christopher Wren’s designs for St. Paul’s Cathedral.
From as early as before the Great Fire of London, Christopher Wren was involved in architectural projects for St. Paul’s cathedral. The evolution of his designs for the new St Paul’s began with his ideas for the old; the evolution of his designs were a process of both creation and reinvention. Starting with the vision he never lost - of the London skyline marked by a grand dome landmark - he endured the problems of building such a complex structure and the short-sighted criticisms of the all-too traditional clergy through dedication and persistence. In this essay I will analyze the evolution of his constant experiments which led up to the final design. Although only partial drawings and half of the original model remains, we have knowledge of what Wren’s intentions were for his first plans for the cathedral thanks to Roger Pratt’s criticisms. Pratt tells us that the cathedral was to consist only of a vaulted auditorium with a large domed vestibule at the west end of it; Pratt noted that it was an unusual plan in its of lack transepts or nave that you would expect to find in a cathedral. The design, which Pratt says was made up of two disparate parts, was likely to be a practical rather than aesthetic solution. The clergy seemed to agree with Pratt’s criticisms and concluded that the design was “not stately enough.” After the rejection of the First Model Wren returned to the drawing board, producing many drawings for “discourse sake.” These designs mainly went in two directions: in one direction towards a cruciform church, similar to what Inigo Jones designed for the remodeling of the old St. Paul’s, and another toward a circular, Greek Cross set up. The most interesting product of these experiments was a design for a large centralized domed church; not unlike Bramante’s St. Peter’s cathedral in Rome. This design consisted of a massive double-dome so large that every
From as early as before the Great Fire of London, Christopher Wren was involved in architectural projects for St. Paul’s cathedral. The evolution of his designs for the new St Paul’s began with his ideas for the old; the evolution of his designs were a process of both creation and reinvention. Starting with the vision he never lost - of the London skyline marked by a grand dome landmark - he endured the problems of building such a complex structure and the short-sighted criticisms of the all-too traditional clergy through dedication and persistence. In this essay I will analyze the evolution of his constant experiments which led up to the final design. Although only partial drawings and half of the original model remains, we have knowledge of what Wren’s intentions were for his first plans for the cathedral thanks to Roger Pratt’s criticisms. Pratt tells us that the cathedral was to consist only of a vaulted auditorium with a large domed vestibule at the west end of it; Pratt noted that it was an unusual plan in its of lack transepts or nave that you would expect to find in a cathedral. The design, which Pratt says was made up of two disparate parts, was likely to be a practical rather than aesthetic solution. The clergy seemed to agree with Pratt’s criticisms and concluded that the design was “not stately enough.” After the rejection of the First Model Wren returned to the drawing board, producing many drawings for “discourse sake.” These designs mainly went in two directions: in one direction towards a cruciform church, similar to what Inigo Jones designed for the remodeling of the old St. Paul’s, and another toward a circular, Greek Cross set up. The most interesting product of these experiments was a design for a large centralized domed church; not unlike Bramante’s St. Peter’s cathedral in Rome. This design consisted of a massive double-dome so large that every
Bibliography: Kerry Downes The Architecture of Wren (Reading, 1988) Kerry Downes Sir Christopher Wren: The Design of St. Paul’s Cathedral (London, 1988) Vaughan Hart St. Paul 's Cathedral: Sir Christopher Wren (London, 1995) Peter Kidson and Peter Murray, A History of English Architecture (London, 1962) Giles Worsley Classical Architecture in Britain. The Heroic Age (New Haven, Conn, 1995)