Design for an Oblong Ceiling
Medium
architecture, interiors
Classification
architecture, interiors
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Museum purchase from the Mary Hearn Greims Fund
Accession Number
1940-21-13
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
George Richardson's *Design for an Oblong Ceiling* (1770–75) captures the elegance of late 18th-century Britishlassical architecture. Born around 1736, Richardson a prolific architect and draftsman whose pattern books influenced interior design across grand estates. This architectural drawing, classified as an interior study, likely served as a blueprint for ornate ceiling decorations in oblong-shaped rooms, a common feature in Georgian homes and public buildings. Created during the height of the neoclassical revival—spurred by archaeological rediscoveries of ancient Rome and Greece—the desig...