Living with architecture as art

Cette magnifique publication en deux volumes fait découvrir aux lecteurs l’une des plus
grandes collections privées de dessins architecturaux au monde. Mettant en valeur des
dessins et des modèles et objets étroitement liés datant de 1691 au milieu du XXème siècle,
ce somptueux pavé inclut à la fois un catalogue et de nouveaux textes provenant d’autorités
expertes. Il fournit un regard intéressant sur ces produits dérivés de formation et pratique
architecturales qui sont souvent très beaux.
One of the largest private collections of architectural drawings in the world has been assembled
over 30 years by investor and philanthropist Peter May. Comprising more than 600 sheets that
have all been carefully preserved and handsomely framed, the drawings and related models and
artefacts date from 1691 to the mid 20th century. This handsome two-volume publication will
introduce amateurs and specialists alike to the largely unknown collection. The book includes
a catalogue and innovative texts by leading authorities that present the raison-d’être for the
production and preservation of these sometimes neglected by-products of architectural training
and practice that have been collected off-and-on through history by individuals and institutions.
The architectural sheets acquired for the collection are principally 19th- or early 20thcentury
competition or certification drawings by design students. Others are presentation
drawings for public commissions, reconstruction studies or interior designs. The catalogue is
arranged by category, to demonstrate May’s inclination towards specific building types such
as commercial or cultural institutions, train stations and spas, landmarks and monuments,
private and royal residences, and cast-iron architecture. Also included is a category for landscape
designs and garden architecture, reflecting May’s experience as a gentleman farmer with a
predilection for building.
Peter May informs the reader about his history as a collector and builder. Maureen Cassidy-
Geiger discusses the formation of the collection and with Basile Baudez introduces the French
system of architectural education, from which some of the finest drawings come. Charles
Hind offers a history of design training in Britain and writes about patterns of collecting and
the market for architectural drawings. Matthew Wells’s subject is the history of architectural
models.