Details the architectural and decorative work executed from the designs of Robert Adams, and those in partnership with his brother James. The designs featured in this book are authenticated pieces and on display to the public.

During the second half of the eighteenth century British architecture moved away from the dominant school of classicism in favour of a more creative freedom of expression. At the forefront of this change were architect brothers Robert and James Adam. Kondo’s work places them within the context of eighteenth-century intellectual thought.

Robert Adam is perhaps the best known of all British architects, the only one whose name denotes both a style and an era. The new decorative language he introduced at Kedleston and Syon around 1760 put him at the forefront of dynamic changes taking place in 18th-century British architecture. His later claim that his practice with his brother James had effected 'a kind of revolution' in design was no idle boast. Their style dominated the later Georgian period and their influence was widespread, not only in Western Europe but in Russia and North America. But for such a well-known figure, much of Robert Adam's art still remains poorly understood. This new study, based on papers given at a Georgian Group symposium in 2015, looks afresh at many aspects of the Adam brothers' oeuvre, such as interior planning, their use of colour, the influence of classical sources, their involvement in the art market, town planning and building speculation, and Robert Adam's late picturesque drawings and castle designs - all within the context of the Adam family background and their personal and working relationships. The Scottish architecture of Robert and James's older brother, John, is also assessed. There are essays by established Adam experts as well as contributions from a younger generation of historians and postdoctoral scholars, one of the book's aims being to stimulate further research on the Adams' contribution to British architecture, art and design.

This volume is a unique compendium of the works of Robert and James Adam, both built and unbuilt. It includes 900 illustrations. The Complete Works of Robert and James Adam is reprinted here in its entirety, updated and corrected. This title covers every one of the 230 or so built works, including 12 that have been recently discovered. It is complemented by a completely new title, Unbuilt Adam. This mentions all the brothers' important unbuilt projects, and it discusses and illustrates 130 of them. This volume gives an exceptionally thorough review of the brothers' designs. From public buildings to country houses, and monuments to ceilings, it is well informed and erudite. It provides a mine of information for both the expert and the general reader, and it uses the works covered to give an understanding of the Adam manner.

One of the most celebrated books in architectural history, this volume consists of 106 illustrated plates that influenced generations of British and American architectural and furniture designs.