Product Description

The beautiful, often breathtakingly lavish architecture and interiors of Sweden between the 1600s and early 1800s have been among the art world’s best-kept secrets.
Overshadowed by the high-profile splendors of Italy and France, and studied and chronicled almost entirely in Swedish, Sweden’s majestic palaces, stately manor houses, and tapestry-like gardens have seemed as remote as the Nordic country itself. On the pages of Classical Swedish Architecture and Interiors 1650–1840, meet such pathbreakers as Nicodemus Tessin the Younger and Carl Hårleman and the ambitious, discerning monarchs and aristocrats who commissioned their work. Learn how Sweden’s architects and designers mined antique and contemporary southern Europe for styles, techniques, and even artisans; how such marvels as the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Drottningholm, and King Gustav III’s beloved Haga took shape and acquired their uniquely Swedish stamp. Step into the rich interiors where Sweden’s kings and their consorts received state visitors, stored and displayed treasures, wrote letters and studied science, and laid their heads to sleep.

The path of visitors to Sweden—scholars and laymen, travelers and armchair explorers alike—will be forever changed and expanded by this book. Stops at the more familiar sites will be informed with knowledge of the who, when, why, and how of each antechamber and pavilion, while the lucid text and abundance of brilliant photographs, complementing such historical documents as engravings and architectural renderings, will open roads to rural corners and coastal retreats where Swedish royals, nobles, and privileged commoners basked in the calm of their country mansions and warmed themselves before their handsome Swedish tile stoves. 236 color.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #256212 in Books
• Published on: 2007-02-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 272 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780393731729
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
Difficult to imagine...not wanting to put Sweden at the top of a visits wish-list after reading through this admirable book. (Historic House Reader, Roger White)

Review
Difficult to imagine...not wanting to put Sweden at the top of a visits wish-list after reading through this admirable book.

About the Author
Johan Cederlund is chief curator of the Uppsala Museum of Art in Sweden.

Lani Summerville-Sternerup, translator, is codirector/owner of Classical Excursions, a travel company in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.

Customer Reviews

An amazingly beautiful book. Full of great information and pictures.
I have bought several books on Swedish architecture and design. This book truly is an important addition to any fan of neoclassical design, although the segments on the baroque, rococco and empire periods are also outstanding.

The sketches, floorplans, photographs and engravings are of an extremely high quality, and the sheer breadth of buildings covered is astounding.

Highly, highly, highly recommended. A beautiful book that is a necessity for anyone with an interest in architecture or interior design.

Classical Swedish Architecture gets a rave review from me.
This is an excellent survey of Swedish architecture and interiors of the most influential historical period and the photographs are splendid.

An excellent acquisition any library serious about world architectural styles will want.
Any college-level holding specializing in world architectural history should have Classical Swedish Architecture & Interiors as part of its collection: art historian John Cederlund covers the foundations of Swedish architecture and interiors and covers the major sites and representations of Swedish style, from stoves to architecture for the monarchy. An excellent acquisition any library serious about world architectural styles will want.