Philibert de l'Orme
By Tavin Keys
Philibert's Life
Philibert was born on June 1, 1514 in Lyons, France. There he spent his childhood with his brother studying under his dad who was a master mason. He later went to Rome and studied architecture for a few years. When he came back he stayed in Lyons until 1538 when his father died. He now moved to Paris and his architecture took off. He lived in Paris, but traveled all around France and even Europe for certain projects. He spent the rest of his life in Paris, until he died on January 8, 1570.
His Art
Philibert's architecture was all over France and he worked for some of the most powerful people in the world. Throughout his works you see a common theme of classicism. He brought many ideas from Ancient Roman and Greek architecture and it showed. He had many arches and columns in most of his buildings. He did also show a few signs of humanism in the sculptures he made by making man the center of the sculpture. As a sculptor and architect he was patronized by King Henry II, King Charles IX, and Catherine de Medici, who was known to patronize many artists. There are a few examples down below.
These Works
The very top picture is of the Royal Church at St. Denis, this shows us classicism and humanism because of the relation to ancient architecture and the humans are the focus. The next two Chateau de Chanonceaux (top) and the Palais de Tuilleries (bottom) both represent classicism by using arches to support the weight of the building which is a relation to Roman architecture
Heliocoidal Stairway
This piece is the most intriguing to me for a couple of reasons. It uses stereotomic techniques to make the most of the space, which was a new thing in this time period. It also involved new mathematical and geometric techniques that became important in most architecture. Finally, it was one of the first of its kind which makes it that much more interesting.
Citations
Works Cited
l’Orme, Philibert. Chateau de Chenonceaux. n.d. Architecture. Chenonceaux, France.
de l’Orme, Philibert. Heliocoidal Staircase. n.d. Architecture. n.d.
"Philibert de l'Orme." International Dictionary of Architects and Architecture. Gale, 1993. Biography in Context. Web. 3 Dec. 2015.
de l’Orme, Philibert. Palais de Tuilleries. 1564-1570. Architecture. Demolished 1883
de l’Orme, Philibert. Royal Abbey Church of St. Denis. 1548-1558 Sculpture. Basilica Catherdral of Saint Denis.