The Elevation of a Church
Medium
architecture
Classification
architecture
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Museum purchase through gift of various donors and from Eleanor G. Hewitt Fund
Accession Number
1938-88-1021
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Giuseppe Valadier, a prominent Italian architect (1762–1839), created *The Elevation of a Church in 1775, when he was just 13 old. This early work his precocious talent during his formative years in Rome, where he under his father, Luigi Valadier, a skilled goldsmith and engraver. As a drawing of a church facade—known as an "elevation" in architectural terms—it represents a flat, scaled projection used by architects to visualize and communicate building designs, bridging the gap between idea and construction. Valadier would go on to become a leading figure in Neoclassicism, a movement that re...