Inigo Jones Research Paper

Just four days after his birth on July 15, 1573, Inigo Jones, the great English architect, was baptized at St. Bartholomew-the-Less in Smithfield, England. This was around the same time that the Elizabethan style of architecture was becoming well established (Gotch 6). He was named after his father, a cloth maker, though there is not much known about his childhood or the identity of his mother. However, what is known is that he was one of England's most interesting and notable designers in architecture, influencing the work of those that came after him. He was able to do so by applying Italian ways of thought and methods in is work under the patronage of the King and the Court (Gotch 7).
It is speculated that Inigo Jones, although city-bred,
“A masque was a dramatic entertainment, usually performed by masked players representing mythological or allegorical figures” and was usually comprised of two main dances and a “going-out” ball (Webster). Examples of his famous masques include many illustrations depicting a “Landschap” drawn by Ben Johnson; this can be seen in The Masque of Blackness, one of his earlier and more famous masques, in 1605 (Bell 7). In masques like these, he was able to use modern innovations, such as the Proscenium and the Machina Versatilis, to create moving, realistic scenes that complimented the dances (Bell 10). Another distinguishing element of Jones’ masques was the way the props were used; flames, torches and smoke would be used to create affects comparable to that of a light-show (Bell 12).
One of the mysteries surrounding his masques include the many drawings and scenes that have no corresponding masques, the most famous of which being The Tragic Scene. Though it was drawn by Inigo Jones’ himself, nobody knows the purpose of the drawing, however, it was “on the general lines of the traditional tragic [scene] evolved by Italian architects…, [and] great pains were bestowed on its preparation (Bell