You can see wonderful examples of Adam’s work in our plasterwork ceilings in the library and staircase hall and the fireplace and ceiling in our saloon. The saloon is amongst the first of Adam’s great rooms, his influence is unmistakeable. Originally conceived as a dining room it now serves as a picture gallery for the Cobbe Collection. The detailed plasterwork of the ceilings is likely to have been inspired by the Roman stucco ceilings that Adam had studied on his Grand Tour.
Style, achievements and legacy
The Adam brothers rejected Palladianism as ponderous. They chose to focus on movement in their architecture and cited Kedleston Hall in Derbyshire as the outstanding example of their work. Robert quickly became one of the foremost architects of his day. He was elected a member of the Royal Society of Arts in 1758 and of the Society of Antiquaries in 1761. Later the same year he was appointed architect of the Kings Works, the body that oversaw the building of royal castles and residences.
He went on to design many wonderful buildings including the City Chambers in Edinburgh, Pulteney Bridge in Bath and the Trades Hall in Glasgow. He was also responsible for renovating the interior of Sir Christopher Wren’s Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.
Robert Adam passed away on 3 March 1792. He left nearly 9000 drawings, many of which are now at the Soane Museum in London.