Joseph Bonomi the Elder facts for kids

The Blickling pyramid, designed by Bonomi.

Joseph Bonomi the Elder (born January 19, 1739 – died March 9, 1808) was a talented Italian architect and draughtsman. A draughtsman is someone who makes detailed drawings, especially for buildings. Joseph Bonomi spent most of his working life in England. There, he became very successful at designing large country houses.

Biography

Joseph Bonomi was born as Giuseppe Bonomi in Rome, Italy, on January 19, 1739. He went to school at the Collegio Romano. Later, he studied architecture with Girolamo Teodoli. He started to become known for his work in Rome.

In 1767, he moved to London, England. He was invited by famous architects Robert and James Adam. He worked for them as a draughtsman starting in 1768. When he first arrived in England, Bonomi also helped another architect named Thomas Leverton.

Joseph Bonomi became good friends with the painter Angelica Kauffman. In 1775, he married her cousin, Rosa Florini. The next year, he designed a sacristy (a room in a church) for St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. This might mean he visited his home city around that time.

In 1783, Angelica Kauffman convinced Bonomi to move back to Rome, where she was living. He took his wife and children with him. It seemed like they planned to stay there forever. However, the very next year, the family returned to London. Bonomi stayed in London for the rest of his life.

Bonomi's first known independent work was in 1784. After this, he quickly became a popular designer of country houses. In 1789, he was chosen as an Associate of the Royal Academy. This is a famous art institution in London. From then on, he often showed his architectural drawings there.

The president of the Royal Academy, Joshua Reynolds, wanted Bonomi to become a full Academician. He thought Bonomi was perfect for the empty position of perspective teacher. But most of the other Academicians did not agree. Bonomi only became an Associate, and that was only because the president cast the deciding vote. Reynolds resigned in protest, but he was soon re-elected.

In 1804, Bonomi was given the honorary title of architect of St. Peter's in Rome. He died in London on March 9, 1808, at 69 years old. He was buried in the Marylebone Cemetery.

Family

In 1775, Joseph Bonomi married Rosa Florini, who was Angelica Kauffman's cousin. They had several children. One of their sons, Ignatius Bonomi (1787–1870), also became an architect. Another son, Joseph Bonomi the Younger (1796–1878), became a well-known sculptor, artist, and expert on ancient Egypt (an Egyptologist).

Joseph Bonomi also had a daughter named Mary Anne. She later married a doctor from York named George Goldie. Their son, also named George, became an architect too. He mostly designed Catholic churches in the Gothic style, like the York Oratory.

Architectural Style

Joseph Bonomi's architectural style was based on Italian or modern Roman designs. He aimed for buildings that looked strong and fitting for their purpose. He did this by using good proportions and careful details, rather than too much decoration. He preferred a style that was truly "architectural" over one that was just "picturesque" (like a pretty picture).

He was bold in his use of Classical architecture. Sometimes, he would even break the usual rules. For example, he might leave out the frieze (a decorative band) from an entablature (the upper part of a building). Or, he might support a portico (a porch with columns) with an odd number of columns.

One of his favorite new ideas was to make the main portico of a house deep enough to form a porte cochère. This is a covered entrance where carriages could drive through to drop off people, protecting them from the weather.

Works

Dale Park, one of Bonomi's designs.

Here are some of Joseph Bonomi's important works:

• Dale Park, in Madehurst, Sussex (1784). This building was taken down in 1959.
• Parts of Towneley Hall near Burnley in Lancashire.
• Barrells Hall, near Ullenhall, Henley in Arden, Warwickshire. This was the home of Lady Luxborough and the Newton family.
• A gallery at Packington Hall, Great Packington, Warwickshire, for the Earl of Aylesford.
• St James' Church, Great Packington, Warwickshire (1789–92).
• A saloon (a large reception room) for Lady Montagu's house in Portman Square, London (1790). This was destroyed in 1941.
• Eastwell House, Kent, for George Finch Hatton (1793-9).
• The Spanish Chapel in Manchester Square, London (1793-6). This was taken down in 1880 and replaced by St James's, Spanish Place.
• The pyramidal mausoleum at Blickling Park, Norfolk. This was built to remember John, second Earl of Buckinghamshire.
• A saloon and staircase at Piercefield House, Monmouthshire.
• Remodeling of Stansted Park, Sussex (he worked with James Wyatt on this).
• Changes to Hatchlands Park, near Guildford, Surrey.
• Church of Our Lady of the Assumption and St Gregory, London (1789–90).
• Laverstoke House, Laverstoke, Hampshire (1798).
• Sections of Lambton Castle, near Washington, County Durham (1798–1802). His son Ignatius later made the castle even bigger.
• Longford Hall, Shropshire.
• Rosneath House, Dunbartonshire, for the Duke of Argyll (1803–06). This building was taken down in 1961.

Literature

Joseph Bonomi is briefly mentioned in the famous novel Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen. In the book, a character named Robert Ferrars tells Elinor that his friend Lord Courtland showed him three house designs by Bonomi. Robert claims he burned them and told Lord Courtland to build a simple cottage instead.