The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-02-17
THE NEW ROYAL ACADEMY.

century, will be held in tne ne " premises. So
important an event in the art history of the day
WIZ interest moro than our professional readers:
30 that a description of this new place for the
displays OF coming seasons will probably be
welcome TO all. Some months silce we gave a
general account of Mr.. :. Smukc's design aud
arrangements for the accommodation of his
brother artists A more detailed description is
now both practicable and permissible; for In
The gardens where stood tina. housc-of which
lts owner is said to have accounted for its re.
motoness by declaring that he desired to live
westward Of every body-is the official centre OF
The srtstic professions.
On this SPOT, where SIR John Denham, poet
and psuedo architect-ior ihe real name was
Meb0- built the mansion WhCs Pcpys visited
lew months more than two centuries since, now
stands the Royal Academy. There "I,D wrote
the dlarlst, ''staudlDg by candle that was
brought io1 sealing letter, do set my peri Fgg
anIe, which made such an Odd noise nobody
could tell what IL was till they s1 the flame,
my back being TO the candle.p 1t was dear
V,sit Oh poor Pepys, as because of it, he was
,5 Iet IN" as folks ooy, 5ay, 20 suPply, my Lord
be was, did so the next day; witness his hand
dutiUlly 20 that effect in the "Pepys Cores
pondenGe" This was but the day after Pepys
had walked with one "Mr. WTes,n Secret Try to
the Dukc OF York (James the S-COnd) in Pail
Mall, where. besides OF the CORFU OtlOn Of this
Court, doubtless they talked about the appoint.
Sir W. Dayenant, deceased, aud, with him, an
older world OF ElIZabethau memories and
things, and, i. may be, of the fine aud almost
adjoining house, which PIat had Just then
finished in Time for the fall o. Clarendon, its
master.
1t seems that the first Burlington House was
but PLAIN ediGCe, aud that this work was faced
with stone by the second Earl Of Burlington, son
of the first, and Popes friend, whom Hogarth
depicted so shrewdly, with Kent, The architect
at work upon the lately lamcnted gateway of
where. DV-thp-bV
lived for three years, and in the gardens of
which the Learned, far, and showy OF six gene.
rations walked aud talked. Gay lived, with
Proi's Kitty lever fair" in a house which stood
in the Garoens; Field Marshal Wade lived and
died In neiehboring house. Painting, sculp-
ture and architecture were studied and much
talked about on this spot, that now OF the arts
and the building, which stands for while
uDatered, bas a pleasantly refined look about
1t which, II not of the best, is good. A little
while has yet TO pass ere the iIont OF this place
must undergo changes that will be wOndrous, if
not admirable; and old Burlington House, which
Pope enjoye1-Bogarth WOuld have hayed If he
could-and where The third Duke OF Portland
lived during his famous mnistry-will never
again be seen as Kent intended 1t should be. As
to the last-named tenant of Burlington House,
he was OF the thirty, one OF whom was said 10
have been Juuius. If this were but truly said
Think, had lhis graceful staircase and these
handsome old-tashioned chambers been inha.
bited and owned by the terrible ''unlbra" him
self In some little closet here, il was thought,
was kept the hayDgknife, as Mr.. Bro Wniue
aptly called tue pen of Junius. Thus much
about the locality, OF which much moro might
be written.
The new Royal Academy stands in that part
OF Burlington House Gardens which is immedI.
atey behind the old house, so close indeed to
this building that its entrance will be through
ats centre, and by means OF the hall, doorway,
and staircase, and an enlarged and converted
window WHICH formerly occupied the head of
the first flight of stepe. This flight, which has
now wings branching on the right and
left TO the upper floors OF the house,
will hn of int nt1Pn fIrln dad fcN.N NIy.
benefit OF the Royal Academy, 10 the whole
breadth of the entry, so as to make much
more convenient If not so elegant an approach,
as now exists, to thO.e suits Of exhibition and
lecture rooms of the new editice which are on
the first story, having beneath them the schools
and offices OF the Academy. The public will
have access TO these rooms by means of a
covered way now built, and traversing the court
yard of Burlington House from the Piccadilly
side of the site. In plan, this upper floor con
sists of three parallel lines of rooms, of which
those on the SOUTH or Plccadilly side, on the
north, or garden side, comprise tive rooms, COM
municatDg throughout The centre of the three
lines is occupied by the Water'Color Room, on
the west; the Great Room next, to wards the
east; the Octagonal Saloon, which supplies an
axis TO the whole series Of galleries; the Lecture
Hall and room on the east which answers to
the WaterCOor Room on the opposite side.
These East and West Rooms, which are COM
paratively narrow, afford means for visitors to
circulate in without entering the three cham.
bers which are intermediate TO them. The
rooms are. with one exception, lighted from the
roof, and their proportions are ample for the dis
play OF pictures. The wall surface OF the whole
is about double that OF the gallery in Trafalgar
Square. On this point of increased accommoda-
tioD, 1t may be we'll TO state that the Academi-
clans are under no compulsion to cover the
whole OF their walls with pictures. The plan OF
the structure, as the reader will understand
from our account Will permit part of the new
suit being shut on from the rest, without pre-
venting The circulation OF visitors. We say this,
because II appears to be expected by many that
every pictureisent for exhibition will be placed
on the walls and therefore that there will be
less chance of reflections OF pictures happening,
whatever may be their character or merits. So
far Is 1t from being likely that a mere Onlaiuia
gdtbeTunl OF works of Art will be made in the
nearly finished galleries, tba. we believe the
Academicians are more likely to raise than
lower their standard OF appreciation and
selection.
BY giving the dimensions OF the new cham
bers, we shall afford a better means tn Al o.her,
wise of judging of the character and capacity
of the whole. or the son hen line OF ivC
rooms, the measurements are 40 fl, 6 IN. by 32 Fl
q in. for the floor of each chamber. Those OF
the northern line are OF the same siz
as the above. The height OF each of thes
rooms is 20 f.. to the cornice, above whlcl
the root Is efOrmed by COviDg, In heig hit II II.
IN. The height OF the lautern or skylight oyel
this is #. in, and, in all, ABOUT 40 4. Tn
window openings are, in plan. 2G IT. by Is II.
IN. The height of the entablature Is lI in
OF the five rooms on the southern line, thqt II
the centre which is at the entrance TO the VIII ole
Is Appropriated to sculpture; also the OctagOua
Saloon, which is loitisr than the other cham
beIs, in the centre line.
In the centre liue, the dOmed Ocagcna
Saloon just mentioned is 43 II. across. Ia plan
in height il is 27 #. TO the cOYnce, IL II. in.
the sill of the dome; II It. in. is the height c
the Openings: above this II u " IT, TO the sum
Utn.h V1..1,, &c n A. IA