Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts: Specialist Study @ LJMU MArch Yr1

Baillie Scott

From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Joel Barnes 1

Baillie Scott From Manx Tradition To Cumbrian Gallery Liverpool John Moores University MArch: Specialist Study 2017

Joel Barnes Tutor: Stephen Bowe

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like first like to thank the help and tutoring of Stephen Bowe, I understand I am not the easiest student to guide through something such as the Specialist Study, but all the more reason to thank you!

I would also like to thank the selfless help and advice of Peter Kelly who took his time out to act as a guide and architectural historian and whilst my (short) visit to the Isle of Man. Without his help this study would be lacking significant primary material.

To Martyn Thomas and Karen Hardcastle, for meeting and speaking with me in their busy schedules about the work being carried out at Thorncroft. Also photo credits to James Brennan of James Brennan Associates for photographs of Thorncroft before renovation and Patricia A Tutt, Dip Arch, RIBA, Cert Ed, ARPS, PhD, for her photographs detailing the renovation of the roofing.

To Stephen Moore, with whom I spoke at great length about my project both in person and via Email. Steve was thoroughly helpful and showed a real interest in my topic, providing really useful feedback and checking in to see how progress was going.

In addition I would like to thank my friend, Kyle Baines, for the use of his camera when photographing Blackwell, which was considerably better than my own. The outcome was brilliant and the credit is his. He is a budding photographer and currently displays his work under the handle @kylejbaines.

And lastly, coffee, thank you.

Front Cover Image: Own Image, 2017 Inside Front: Ibid Back Cover Image: Ibid

Introduction

Table of Contents

An Introduction to the Ar ts and Crafts Movement................. 1

An Introduction to the architect; M. H. Baillie Scott...............11

An Introduction to the Lake District...................................... 7

The Isle of Man: Baillie Scott’s Twelve Year Holiday

Early Beginnings.....................................................................15

Red House and the rise to fame...............................................20

T he Shift Towards a W hitewash Wall.......................................26

Blackwell

Planning and Conce ption........................................................31

Interior Analysis.....................................................................32

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Decorative Analysis.................................................................37

Discussions and Conclusion

20th Centur y Blackwell............................................................49

21st Centur y Blackwell.............................................................51

Conclusion...............................................................................53

Closing Words..........................................................................56

Illustration References............................................ 58 Bibliog raphy............................................................ 60 Appendix.................................................................. 64 Photog raphic Appendix............................................ 81

INTRODUCTION ‘Fine Art is that in which the hand, the head, and the heart of a man go together.’

John Ruskin, 1859 An Introduction to the Arts and Crafts Movement

The Arts and Crafts Movement is a period of influential applied art and design, commonly practiced between 1870 and 1920.1 Its roots began in Victorian Britain and its theories shaped the early modernist movement. This was first suggested by Nikolaus Pevsner in Pioneers of the Modern Movement (1936) in that the Arts and Crafts was an antecedent of modernism, to which it had contributed a functionalist and stripped-down aesthetic. The Arts and Crafts Movement was formed during an era, in which freedom of artistic expression was fashionable.3 Indeed, the Arts and Crafts was a style born from social and a flourished.4 The industrial revolution, by dividing labour and mechanising production, removed any ownership and pride in design and their designers, ‘it turned them into a mere cog on the wheel of machinery.’5 It was due to this uncompromising industrial machine that William Morris, Edward Pugin, John Ruskin and others formed a generation of designers and thinkers, which sought to provide an alternative to the harshness of late 19th century industrialism . They encouraged individualism, the creation of hand-made goods in place of machine uniformity, and a reappraisal of design materials changing the very process of how we worked and lived. W.R. Lethaby summarised the idealistic nature of the movement in his 1891 publication Architecture, Mysticism and Myth.7 : ‘The Message will be of nature and man, of order and beauty, but all will be sweetness, simplicity, freedom, confidence and light’ 8

Morris’ friend and fellow practitioner Phillip Webb constructed one of the first Arts and Crafts houses in 1859. Entitled the ‘Red House’, it encapsulated these characteristics, in stark contrast to the kitsch decorations on display eight years earlier at London’s Great Exhibition;9 [Fig.1] much of which William Morris’ personal distaste for industrial manufacture was derived from.10

‘…apart from my desire to produce beautiful things, the leading passion of my life is hatred of modern civilisation.’ 11

Their aim was to re-establish a relationship between architect, designer and artisan,12 effectively bringing back handcraftsmanship to the mass production of well-made, affordable, everyday products, although contradiction lies at its heart. The later Nineteenth Century was an age of Brotherhoods and manifestos yet The Arts and Crafts Movement never definitively categorised itself, nor was its membership defined.13 ‘It took until 1887, the foundation of the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society, that it gained significant identity. It also preached practical socialism, in our and in life, yet its output was only financially viable for the Victorian gentry. It was an international phenomenon, yet vernacularisms are quintessential to its ethos and moulded the style depending on location. The practitioners looked back to an age of craftsmanship, yet depended on innovations such as electric lighting, central heating and the motorcar.’ 14

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Above, Fig.1: Internal Photograph of the Great Exhibition in London, 1851 Left, Fig.2: Portrait of William Morris, ca.1870

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It is very easy to believe that during this period, the architectural strand of Arts and Crafts was difficult to define stylistically and proved significant in the variety of its architecture.15 For example, Gothic Romanticism drove Morris’ Red House, with its faux pointed arches over the doorways and windows, but later examples such as Voyseys ‘Broadleys’ (1898-99) used Cumbrian materials and the practical and simplistic nature of Lakeland vernaculars to provide a more regionally specific response to the same ideology. [Fig.3/6]

The next generation of architects such as Baillie Scott, Edwin Luytens and Charles Voysey drew upon relative success in the work of Morris, Webb and Ruskin, taking the Domestic Revival together the various societies and organisations which celebrated the craftsman and their work, the movement carried considerate momentum towards the end of the 19th century.16 These individuals placed significance in location, value of their material and the juxtaposition between the architecture and its surrounding nature.17 These holistic approaches were widely accepted in continental Europe, and to some extent in North America, aligning more so with the furniture design forms of the Shaker Movement.18 Only in Britain did the form stay true to its style in both architecture and the applied arts.

Right, Fig.3: Gothic inspired windows on Red House.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Below, Fig.4: The Andrews Shaker collection, ca.1840 Right, Fig.5: A Chair designed by Baillie Scott at Blackwell, 1900 Opposite, Fig.6: Broadleys in the Lake District, C. F. A. Voysey

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An Introduction to the Lake District

many followers in the process. W.J. and Eliza

The Lake District was a cultural backwater for centuries, separated from the mainland by sheer difficulty of passage to it.19 It was not through physical accessibility that changed this, but through an aesthetic sensibility.20 By 1750, the Age of Reason had given way to that of Romanticism, and the search for a lost paradise.21 Detached from the effects of the Industrial Revolution and rich with flora and fauna, the Lake District was a timely setting for travellers to fall in love with its natural beauty. The age of reliable and speedy transport was a pivotal point in history of the Cumbrian landscape.

In 1847, the rail network extended as far in the Lakes as Windermere, essentially creating the modern day settlement in its process.22 Regular services began operating between Windermere village to Bolton or Manchester, and soon after, holiday homes sprung up along the Lakes accessible Eastern shoreline.23 The amalgamation of such picturesque landscapes and architectural ideals came not long after the railways. John Ruskin [Fig.8] made a huge impact on his arrival to Coniston in 1871, quickly spreading his ideals and gaining

Linton, an extraordinary couple- artists, writers and revolutionary socialists- decided to emigrate and offer John Ruskin their house at Coniston.24 ‘W. G. Collingwood, a polymath himself, began work as his scribe and four years later, clergyman and conservationist Hardwicke Rawnsley made Ruskin’s acquaintance through the mutual friendship of Collingwood. Rawnsley later went on to be one of the founding members of the National Trust,25 which was directly inspired from the formation of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB),26 which Ruskin help form. Meanwhile, architects and designers throughout the country began to realise the potential of their nation’s vernacular architecture.27 As previously mentioned, Phillip Webb’s Gothic Revival at Bexleyheath was an early precedence to the beauty early Arts and Crafts could instil in revival architecture. The Lake District however provided a context to give its core principles true purpose.

Below, Fig.7: Brantwood, Coniston, ca. unknown Left, Fig, 8: John Ruskin, ca. 1850’s Opposite, Fig.9: Fell Foot, Langdale

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Architecture in the Lake District, like books, are artefacts, which are born from simplicity.28 The first travellers came across wild marshlands scattered with ‘villages of sad huts artless and without beauty or thought to design.’29 These vernaculars were deemed ugly, dilapidated and without taste of style. The 17th century passed and the age of romanticism brought a generation of travellers who had an altered perception of this rustic, vernacular setting. The huts, whilst not possessing the architectural finesse of other contemporary buildings, had perfectly evolved to do suit their setting.30 It was in this practicality that people found the aesthetic most pleasing. Cumbrian structures can be distinguished by their materiality and shaped by unpredictable weather, they were built low and sheltered by the landscape and often aligned with the wind. Windows were deep set, porches were solid and grounded, and chimneys were round and solid. [Fig.10] The roof was simplistic, avoiding hips and gave them an altogether horizontal look.31 Materials were natural and sourced within reason, that is, a distance close enough to transport heavy material like stone and slate.

To stand out from the vastness of the fells and create a distinct white render finish, the exterior was covered in lime whitewash.[Fig.9]32 The interior and plan are, too, characteristic. Farmhouses seldom used a front door, opting for a side entrance, leading to a vestibule of sorts, which allowed the user to pass between different internal environments gradually. They entered the house into its centre, generously named the fireroom, the warmest and largest room in the house. At its centre was the hearth, accompanied with seating and lighting through a small fire window.33 A room within a room, an Inglenook.34 Later examples of seated fireplaces were derived from vernaculars found in country cottages. [Fig.11]

The prototype of the Arts and Crafts houses were evident in the country house of the Lake District, its cosy vernacular, low frontage façade and sturdy structure gave way to a cosy interior with inglenook fireplaces, cased within large rooms, serving multiple purposes. Many Arts and Crafts architects disregarded Victorian convention of compartmentation.35 Instead, they chose to emulate the cottage layout, albeit on a much larger scale. The vernacular was not carbon copied however; architects began to evolve their own style. The importance of sunlight and vistas became paramount

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Above, Top, Fig.10: Vernaculars of a Rydal Cottage Above, Fig.11: Original Inglenook Fireplace as part of an 18th century cottage Right, Bottom, Fig.12: Motorcar parked at Broadleys Right, Top, Fig.13: Voysey’s Broadleys large central window

in the Lake District; this led to larger frontages with windows to allow penetrating light into the plan.36 Bay windows, [Fig.13] acting as Inglenooks have become prevalent, substituting the fire for the sun, a comparison once made by Baillie Scott. In the cases of Blackwell and Broadleys, the fireplaces became secondary to the window seating in the Drawing Room and Central Hall respectively. The introduction of central heating may have reduced the demand of an open fire and it may have evolved into an aesthetic fancy more than a functional necessity.

It is clear that these modern houses had drastically changed their purpose. Whilst the requirements that originally dictated the farmhouse vernacular were purposeful, these had fundamentally changed. What was practical to the working class became defunct to the Victorian Gentry. The invention of the motorcar [Fig.12] had made these new holiday homes considerably more accessible, running on wider country lanes, built to service the newly built railways. Motor houses and quarters for the chauffeur replaced the conventional stables.37 Servant rooms appeared in all but a few of these homes, and kept separate to the homeowners, an expression of their obvious affluence. It is only through analysing these forms in detail and making comparisons with their precedence do you see the simplistic nature of the architect’s intentions.

Ultimately, building in the Lake District, much like The Arts and Crafts Movement, was born from ideals. The cultural backwater became the forefront of opulent expressionism. Leaders from Manchester and Leeds, once connected, were suddenly able to coexist in both environments. Unrestricted planning laws allowed people, twinned with an almost limitless budget, to produce some of the country’s finest examples of artisan houses dictated by the new ‘art’ of living,38 albeit for a distinctly minute portion of the population. The Lake District was a stone’s throw away from the industrial world yet neatly defined within unsullied landscapes and clean air39 and this promise

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Left, Fig.14: Unknown view out to the Cumbrian Hillside Right, Fig.15: Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott, ca. 1900

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Introduction to the Architect; M. H. Baillie Scott

Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott spent a considered amount of his architectural career concerned with the design of smaller country houses and their furnishings.40 He practiced as an architect over 6 decades, only retiring a year shy of the Second World War and during this time, he was exposed to a plethora of architectural style as well as aesthetic reforms. He built upon achievements of Ruskin, Morris and Webb who a generation before Scott had developed the domestic revival style and this ultimately held crucially impactful for his professional career. Coming from relatively modest backgrounds, he pursued architecture when his original career of Cattle ranching, chosen by his Father,41 waned. His architectural career came to fruition quite suddenly after he visited and later permanently stayed on the Isle of Man, realising its potential as a holiday retreat for the affluent Victorian gentry. Scott always had an affirmation for the country. His interest could have been due to his upbringing along the Kentish coast before studying in the Cotswolds;42 nevertheless, nature was still an integral part of his childhood and adolescent years, which he translated to architectural discipline.

‘Baillie Scott’s concept of the house is already that it is an orgasm, which is thoroughly unified and interrelated externally and internally . . . in this, there lies an improvement upon the London movement’.45

His most revered (and most accurately preserved) building is doubtlessly Blackwell, situated around Lake Windermere, in Bowness, it is the closest example of ‘Arts and Crafts’ architecture he produced, down to the smallest details, which was extremely documented in his Houses and Gardnes book of 1906.46 It is at this point that the crux of the writing will revolve around and culminate.

His work was some of the best of the era and his contemporaries, not only due to the homogeneity of its style47 but the simplistic beauty in which he went about designing it. Quintessential to his ethos of creating anything between architecture and furniture was simplicity in design and functionalism. ‘He was a true pioneer of The Arts and Crafts Movement.’48

On the Isle of Man, he brought his own style with him, in which to develop during his twelve-year residency there. He had only reached architecture maturity after his time on the Isle of Man, which were his most formative years.43 Although brief, many of his most interesting commissions stem from the work he produced on the Island, in both physical and hypothetical capacities.44 He evolved his style, which was closer to the domestic revival in its infancy to something that emulates The Arts and Crafts Movement and even had influences in the Modernist Movement. From the Isle of Man Baillie Scott took commissions from England and Scotland as well as continental Europe.

His publications were far reaching and he gained wide spread attention for his ingenious design methods. Hermann Muthesius wrote of Scott’s earlier internal layouts:

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Above, Fig.16: View From Bedroom Window at Blackwell

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Notes: 1. Rough estimate of its chronology. The Arts and Crafts Movement in Architecture only flourished from 1880’s onwards and by the 1920’s the movement had transitioned to Japan.

Dates sourced from u.a., Victoria and Albert Museum: The Arts & Crafts Movement [Website], 2016 2. Quoted from Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.XXV, original text from Pevsner, N., Pioneers of the Modern Movement, 1936 3. Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.6 4. Ibid, P.7 5. Ibid. P.6 6. Ibid, P.9 7. Quoted from Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.9, original text is Lethaby, W. R., Architecture, Mysticism and Myth, 1891.

8. Ibid, P.9 9. The Great Exhibition of 1851, or The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations was the first international exposition of manufactured products and machines as well as various artisan products from across the globe. During its five-month display, over six million visitors came through the doors. From what they saw, John Ruskin and William Morris felt strongly against the usage of manufactured art. For a more detailed analysis see Jeffrey Auerbach’s The Great Exhibition of 1851: A Nation on Display.

23. Ibid, P.15 24. Ibid, P.15 25. u. a., Visit Cumbria: Canon Hardwicke Drummond Rawnsley, [Website], http://www. visitcumbria.com/canon-rawnsley/ accessed 23rd February 2017 26. u.a., Red House: Bexleyheath, 2003. P.12 27. Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.6 28. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014. P.17 29. Ibid, P.9 30. Ibid, P.17 31. Ibid, P.17 32. Ibid, P.18 33. These were only ever small and subdued in the recess in the Inglenook but allowed a small amount of light to penetrate an usual spot in the plan. Baillie Scott executed numerous Inglenook windows during his career. For more information see List of Works in the Appendix.

34. Although used in many types of farmhouses (An evolution from the hearth room) the Inglenook became quintessential to an Arts and Crafts floor plan, many architects dedicated generous amounts of space to it and its Inglenook seating.

35. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014. P.18

10. William Morris seemed to have disliked the displays at the Great Exhibition so much that he voluntarily left in disgust. Quoted from Bryson, B. At Home: A Short History of Private Life, 2011. P.32

36. Ibid, P.18

11. Quote from Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.15

38. Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.7

12. Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.6

39. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014. P.18

13. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014. P.7

40. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.XXIIII

14. Ibid, P.7 15. Ibid, P.7 16. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.XXIII 17. Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.6 18. Quote in Stickley, G. The Best of Craftsman Homes, 1979, P.6; The Shaker movement far precedes the Arts and Crafts (Beginning sometime during the mid-18th century, but its aesthetic of pared-down, highly functional forms and perceived self-sufficiency parallels The Arts and Crafts Movement.

19. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014 P.8 20. Ibid, P.8 21. Ibid, P.8 22. Ibid, P.1

37. Ibid, P.180

41. Ibid, P.4 42. Ibid, P.4. His education had also concentrated on Agriculture, so it is clear nature had an impactful meaning on his life and work.

43. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.XXIX It is suggested that he may have reached some form of architectural maturity in roughly 1898, during his Blackwell commission was being proposed.

44. ‘Hypothetical’ is referring to his work for The Studio, regularly referenced during this piece.

The Studio, Vol. 1, No. 4, 1894.

45. Quoted in Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. Original text from Muthesius, H. The English House, 2nd edn., 1979.

46. Houses and Gardnes categorises Baillie Scott’s ideal propositions for every single aspect of the home. He then applies his work to his current portfolio.

47. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.XXIIII

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The Isle of Man: Baillie Scott’s Twelve Year Holiday ‘Baillie Scott’s main attempt was to bring ar t to the small house, a thing unpr ecedented in the histor y of ar chitectur e’ J. D. Kor nw olf , 1972

The Victorian era had profound effects on the Isle of Man, both socially and economically.1 This, in turn, altered the architecture there too. A shift from primary based industries such as fishing and farming to that more focussed on tourism especially that of the Victorian Gentry was evident in way towns like those that Douglas was developing.2 The beginning of the 19th century saw growth increase at an unsupported rate, and the Island was known for its unsanitary conditions. The small permanent population was only able to control the influx of visitors when proper political steps were made. In 1860, a council in Douglas had been created to tackle issues linked with the aftermath of overcrowding with greater efficiency and by 1869 (the same year Douglas replaced Castletown as Capitol and seat of the Tynwald)3 sanitation and public cleanliness had improved.4 Accumulative visitors were recorded in the years between this and Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee visit in 1887, attracting over 300,000 people alone. 5 The council also had a hand in the redevelopment of the town’s anachronistic architecture. It was ill fitting and unsafe for tourists visiting. The islands new capital had to be modernised in order to promote a vibrant image. The promenade area was built in 1870 to allow visitors greater access to the coast and the original maze like streets in town were simplified and widened for automobile traffic. There was a greater sense of civic pride during the last half of the 1800’s, seeing 35% of the Manx population now living in Douglas.6 It had developed a reputation as a holiday destination for the upper classes of English society towards the last decade of the 19th century.

Opposite, Fig.17: Isle of Man, presumably after 1887, as the Jubilee Clock is seen.

Meanwhile, in Bath, on the 16th February 1889, Baillie Scott married Florence Kate Nash.8 It was suggested that not much later they went on their honeymoon, and like many, they selected the Isle of Man. His lengthy stay, although widely documented, was not due to seasickness.9 During an interview with Peter Kelly MBE, Chairman of the Victorian Society and Captain of the Onchan Parish said that it was ‘nonsense’ and that it was created for story telling purposes only. It was much more likely it was due to the rising gentrification of the Island and the potential for his work that proposed. They had settled on the Island and resided at 35 Alexander Terrace,10 a typically pokey terraced house, everything in which Baillie Scott wished to rid from architecture[see Appendix I line 56]. He began working for surveyor Fred Saunderson immediately, and at the same time attended classes in Geometry and Drawing at the Isle of Man School of Art, where he met Archibald Knox.11

He began receiving commissions in his first year on the Island but it’s often debated which design was first erected. Most historians claim it was in Saunderson’s company that his first commission was recorded, a doctor who had purchased some land from the firm and had asked to design an ‘Ultra Hygienic House’.12 Peter Kelly corrects this by suggesting that this only is true that Scott was involved in the design stage, but the doctor had carried out the final construction.13 Instead, it was around Port St. Mary in which the first supposed homes Baillie Scott had a hand in. At the time, gentrification of the Island had reached its Southern tips, a few miles from Castletown, and planners had decided to create the Port St. Mary building estate.14 A series of luxury homes on the coast to attract potential buyers. The scheme was a resounding failure; as

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery only three homes were built. Two still exist, Perwick Villa and Windy Rig. Half-timbered, half masonry homes with horizontal windows, tall chimneystacks and protruding, gabled entrance porches are surely the first examples of Baillie’s work on the Island. Kelly’s assumptions of their origin is backed up with an appraisal for the Port St. Mary conservation area in 2009, in which they noted: ‘Perwick Villa and Windy Rig on Clifton Road, that are a pair of half-timbered houses in the Art and Crafts style, reputed to have been designed by Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott.’ 15

However, documentation following the Port St. Mary confusion has more clarity. Baillie Scott moved from Saunderson’s in 1892 started his own practice at the age of 27. His first publication never made it to completion, a bungalow for a client named Mr Bates,16 but had a curved frontage, and this aesthetic could be drawn from a contemporary on the Island, Armitage Rigby, associated as Scott’s ‘Rival’. Following this, he commissioned a small cottage, North Lodge. The water head sits atop the building and reads 1892, meaning construction probably started earlier the same year.

Certain features here are key signs that he began to develop his own style early on. The exterior is again half-timbered but has a tapered base to the masonry, which came from a quarry 100 yards from the site. Moulded mullion windowsills are found again around the house, with the overall horizontal window design being sporadic and arbitrary. This was intentional, as Herman Muthesius writes:

‘In Baillie Scott’s work each room is an individual creation, the elements of which do not just happen to be available but spring from the overall idea.’ 17

In which he means that Scott designed each space to serve a function, not to fulfil aesthetic symmetry. It was this attention to interior space, which gained Scott considerate attention in his early career. North Lodge was arguably the first of Scott’s designs to use the inglenook window feature, too.18 [Fig.20]

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Going above the ground floor the half-timber stays true to his earlier designs, but the introduction of the flat dormer is first seen here. This is evident in a great number of his future work. The dormers sit within a steep pitched roof, with a tall chimneystack, detailed in a Ballanard Brick19, quarter of a mile from site. This opposes the stone (probably Manx Slate) stack found at the two houses at Port St. Mary. The same year he completed North Lodge the parish at Braddan approached him to construct an office cemetery. However small in size, many features are reminiscent of his architectural language. The small brick building sports a recessed porch, detailed brick chimney and red slate roofing. Although the red slate was foreign, Manx slate and Ballanard Brick from North Lodge were reused.20 This repeated formwork of the brick and stone are seen at Braddan Primary School, a hundred yards down the road. It’s suggested it was a large factor in the resulting design, but it also displayed one of Scott’s first attempts to respect local vernacular. On the same site as the office, Baillie Scott’s early stained glass work is on show at the Cemetery Chapel. [See Appendix] The colour and abundance of nature (floral appearances) in the glass was surely then precedential, beckoning of Scott’s future work at Blackwell.

Opposite, Top, Fig.18: Perwick Villa and Windy Rig Opposite, Fig.19: Prososed visual and floor plan of the unbuilt bungalow.

Above, Fig20: Various Images of North Lodge, showing early detail.

Expressed in the opening introduction, Scott predominantly busied his architectural career with country homes and a considerable amount of his publications revolved around the idea of creating the ‘art for living’21 The next series of houses all demonstrated the English domestic vernacular, but Scott’s agenda began to come into maturity. Chronologically, Oakleigh House was finished next but in reality, he had numerous commissions ongoing between roughly 1892 and 1894. Oakleigh originated under a different scheme a few years prior, but was tweaked and enlarged. Oakleigh’s interior used a change in level to distinguish room function and form.22 For example, the hall and drawing room are higher than the dining room and kitchen, in which a stairwell connects them. This brings the viewer out to the main circulation space of the house.23 Reliance upon a change of level to differentiate function and to vary form became a primary feature of Scott’s planning and a highly original aspect of his work.24

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Opposite, Top, Fig.21: Red House, 2017 Right, Bottom, Fig.22: Oakleigh House, ca. 1893 Below, Fig23: Front door of Oakleigh, 2017 Right, Fig.24: Dining Room of Oakleigh, ca. 1893

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Oakleigh from the outside again draws from the English vernacular from the road façade, but transforms somewhat in the garden elevation. With its veranda, awnings and tile-hung surfaces, Oakleigh could easily be mistaken for a shingle style house.25 However staying true to the developing style of the Arts and Crafts, moulding is kept to a minimum and lack any reference to period detail.26 In addition, whilst the half-timbering is evident, unlike North Lodge, the bottom half of local Manx slate is replaced with imported brick.

This is due to the limited selection of brickworks on the Island.

Using the commission value at Oakleigh and ‘The Mansion’, a large country home built in the Jacobean style for a wealthy Lancashire Manufacturer C. MacAndrew;27 it is likely he began work on his own house in 1893. Entitled ‘The Red House’ (A symbolic to Webb’s original Red House in Bexleyheath) it drew upon the achievements that Oakleigh and his earlier work possessed. He did not base the design upon Webb’s at all however, but an Ernest George cottage in Harpenden. A various amount of styles and materials are near identical on inspection. Jacobean chimneystacks have been transplanted from George’s cottage, and the sloping roofline jutting over the small veranda mimics Georges work too. The interior has been produced in the same fashion as Oakleigh, but in a more comprehensive way. To make the hall integral to the house, it is enlarged and made accessible to the other two principle rooms on the ground floor. To allow circulation between floors, a stairwell compartment is adopted, although connected to the hall; it stands as a completely separate entity.28 Scott also uses the buildings wall reliefs as usable space containers,29 which began at Oakleigh but executed with more finesse at Red House. The Inglenook, like North lodge, is complete with a fire window to create a cosy aesthetic as well as drawing light into the space, and is located immediately as you enter the hall. This room therefore acts as a dwelling worthy space in its own right. Kornwolf wrote: ‘It was the architect’s determination to find flexible, living space everywhere in the small house.’30

Despite the house being over 120 years old, it is interesting that Scott’s design ethos has become highly relevant in modern architecture to have flexible living accommodation throughout the

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Above, Top, Fig. 24: Original view of Red House, ca. 1965.

Above, Fig.25: Red House as it exists today, 2017.

Opposite, Below, Fig.26: One of Red Houses Inglenook Fireplaces, ca.1965 Opposite, Above, Fig. 27: Red Houses ground floor plan.

scheme. Another example of his understanding of flexibility is the usage of sliding doors, separating the hall from the drawing and dining room. Opening these drastically altered the internal balance of Red House. He described the panelling as follows: ‘These rooms are divided by panelled screens which are removable and when taken from their position may be used as folding screens in the various rooms. By this means the inconvenience which arises from the inevitable smallness of rooms in a house where economy is to be studied is obviated, and in a small house on festive occasions a large amount of space can be obtained.’31

A thoughtful method of producing features that transcends the usefulness of spaces, combining the functionality of rooms is something that separates Scott’s work from his contemporaries in 1892.32 The contrasts of thin, movable panel walls and heavy fireplace masses, intimate inglenooks and open plan living areas, with graduated changes of levels surpass the usual context of room, floor and wall, yielding a new unity of mass and space.33 It is the refined elements of spatial acknowledgements inside a relatively humble sized home that demonstrate Scott’s ability. The final building associated with his early pre mature style is his largest commission on the Island. Ivydene, like the previous examples was half-timbered but used red Peel sandstone at the bottom. This division of materiality was another way in which Scott differentiated the functions between upper and lower floors.34 The entrance porch has been detailed an enlarged. Stain glass appears for the first time on the upper panels, a small gable with stonework at the bottom provides a sample of the materials of the house.35 On entering the long porch, which acts as a room itself, features of Red house are emulated here. The hall is centralised once more, with the option to connect this to the dining room with the removal of folding screens, a change in level between principle rooms and servant spaces are evident, and the staircase has been compartmentalised, albeit with a recessed gantry to break up the circulation pattern. Ivydene begins to give evidence towards Scott’s ability of decorating spaces coloured glass, ornamentation and friezes. His desire to design a building, with as much emphasis on its décor as the structural components becoming clear here. His use of vibrant colour, especially when detailing fireplaces, comes in

21

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery the form of blue and white Dutch wall tile.36 The copper hood at the centre of the inglenook is adorned with repousse ornaments, consisting of two interweaving flowering branches, in which he repeatedly used in later friezes. Contemporaries such as Voysey also used these, but ultimately trace back to designs by

Mackmurdo and his ‘Cromer Bird’ of 1884.37 Birds in flight, which became so typical in Scott’s interior design, were used here first in 1895.38 Ivydene also had a skylit staircase[Fig.30],remeniscent of the gallery skylight in Blackwell.

Above, Fig.28: Ivydene today.

Right, Fig.29: Ivydenes Brass Firehood, ca.1965 Top Right, Fig.30: Ivydenes Skylit Hallway Opposite, Fig.31: The Ideal Suburban House, as appeared in The Studio, 1894.

22

This period was particularly formative for Scott, not for what he had commissioned but the developing style flourishing because of exposure through The Studio magazine. The January of 1895 saw his first published article, ‘An Ideal Suburban House’,39 which detailed a house loosely based around the parameters already produced in his current portfolio. The Studio was a popular fine arts magazine in which new styles were showcased and in publishing his interpretation of Arts and Crafts to the masses, it quickly became a fashionable delight. He received dozens of commissions based upon the hypothetical house proposal alone.40 Over the next 8 years, he would go to publish in The Studio nine times, detailing furniture design, decoration, fireplaces in the home and later considering entire country cottages. [Fig.31]

On the Isle of Man in the years between 1895 and 1897, Scott took a step towards his architectural maturity in Hollybank and Myrtlebank. Two identical semi-detached cottages within walking distance of his older work in Little Switzerland. They compare considerably smaller to the others, but of a similar size to North Lodge, Scott has had to alter the methods of internal massing. Aesthetically, they show a definite architectural evolution

from his work prior to them. Roughcasting is used for the first time on the upper parts of the building, with half-timber only occupying the upper echelons of the gables. The internal layouts retain many of the features in older work, but on an intimate scale. Tapering occurs in many of the external walls and internal fixtures, commonplace in his mid-1890’s work. The same year these two were finished, two (slightly larger) semi-detached homes were finished in a style closer still to his identifiable Arts and Crafts style seen at Blackwell.

Braeside and Leaside’s half-timbered elements are only visible at the very tops of the gables, being pushed upwards further still. The rest is roughcast render, with a low horizontal look to it. [Fig.35] Flat dormer window separate roof level gables, which protrude outwards from a sizeable slate roof. Inside, the spaces are adapted to create a sort of hall in the entrance corridor. He has achieved this with a recession in the wall and providing seating. The ability to achieve this sense of purpose in an otherwise purely circulatory space was an ability in which Scott excelled. His desire to banish the defunct ‘modern’ hall is evident in these two buildings, even at this scale. The staircase, which is adorned in Rowan Trees and tapering newels,41 sits perpendicular to the hall so a space in front of it is created, instead at the expense of the rooms already limited floor area.

23

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

24

The last logical progression of Scott’s evolution towards mature Arts and Crafts culminates in 1898; two commissions in particular are some of the last he completed during his residency in the Isle of Man ; Thornbank and the Onchan Village Hall. The village hall, despite lacking the typological characteristics as the other buildings, is an extension of Scott’s usage of stained glass and tapering walls, they are particularly predominant here. [Fig.37] An additional, smaller entrance is one of the few additions; however,

most of the original features remain. The rear staircase sits within a small vertical block and snakes to lower floors, with multiple doorways servicing it. Tapering newels are seen again but decoration is kept minimal. The heart shapes first located in Ivydene are revisited here, but in much greater numbers. Thornbank was built shortly after the completion of the Village Hall and displays some of the rawest forms of Scott’s Arts and Crafts style produced.

Opposite, Far, Fig.32: Fornt gate of Myrtlebank Opposite, Fig.33: Rear View of Myrtlebank, ca.1896 Opposite, Top, Fig 34: Floor plan of both Semi-Detached Houses Left, Fig.35: Gabled window arches at Leafield and Braefield.

25

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Left, Fig.36: Interior view at Onchan Village Hall Below, Fig.37: Exterior view at Onchan Village Hall Opposite, Fig.38: Renovated work at Thornbank, Falconcliffe Terrace

The verticality of the central window almost act as a precursor to the modernist movement and the roughcasting of the entire building is finally apparent. Built one year prior to Blackwell, the aesthetic correlation is plain to see. It was built as part of a row of terraces, a style that Scott detested.43 Similarly, to the other smaller homes, Thornback creates a recessed hall in the centre of the house, but develops the plan to include a small inglenook fireplace at its centre [Fig], and double doors meant to open and allow flexibility between the hall and dining room. This example later found in Blackwell is an impressive realisation. On the floors above, both the front and back bedroom have bay window seats, detailed mouldings on the fire mantle are again seen and the top floor dormer finish is actuallyactually tapered. The building is currently in a state of renovation by Horncastle and Thomas [Detailed In Appendix], and Martyn Thomas expressed the importance of preserving the minute detailing. ‘There are features, such as the tapered dormer window which need to be respected and retained, having said that, some features

26

will need to be modernised and brought into the 21st century, but it’s our priority to either reuse materials wherever possible or source identical or similar when the first option is untenable.’ 44

Architectural evolution made by Scott in these years on the Isle of Man show a clear progression from a familiar vernacular revival to a style completely separate in its own right. Although his earlier houses on the Island are still based on historical forms, one of his strongest characteristics had already emerged his strong tendency to design unusual ground plans.45 It was this aspect of his work that was deemed most memorable, certainly in the infancy of his career. The later pieces of work on the Island (some documented here) challenge the plan of the smaller house, which were often designed based on a modification of a larger house. Unlike his contemporaries, Scott had done away with the box-like division of the rooms and often made rooms to be opened up to one another, deceptively creating spacious accommodation in smaller dwellings.46

Baillie Scott is one of those architects who have discovered entirely personal forms of expression.47 Its undeniable however, that inspiration was drawn from a variety of sources and not just from his own personal prejudice towards the errors of architecture in which he wrote so discerningly about. Although touched upon previously, the economic and social climate of the Isle of Man at the time of Scott’s visit effectively persuaded him to stay and develop a style that was so alien to the current vernacular.48 Numerous national publications exposed his works to the masses but reciprocally introduced the works of Voysey, Mackintosh and Luytens to Scott.

These designers had surely met as Scott had regularly started exhibiting work in the Architectural Room and the Royal Academy

of Arts from 1894. It is possibly fairer to say he had developed personal forms of expression because of vernacularisms he had drawn from the Isle of Man and The Arts and Crafts Movement occurring on mainland England. Thornbank on Flaconcliffe Terrace is then Scott’s closest attempt of a Manx vernacular, where we see a stone built building, rendered in whitewash and roofed in slate. In an almost regressive sense, Scott moved away from revival styles and began to adopt like for like vernacularisms before designing Blackwell in the Lake District, a region with strong architectural identity. His translation of the Arts and Crafts is therefore one of the humblest and purest of his era.

27

Notes:

27. Ibid, P.95

1. Kniveton, G. N., Douglas Centenary 1896-1996

29. Ibid, P.97

2. Ibid

30. Ibid, P.100

3. The High Court of Tynwald is the parliament of the Isle of Man and has an unlimited, but not necessarily exclusive, legislative competence. Extracted from the Tynwald government page. http://www.tynwald.org.im/Pages/default.aspx

31. Ibid, P.100, an extract from M. H. Baillie Scott’s Houses and Gardnes, An Ideal Suburban House, P.127-128 1906. It was this theory of endless flexibility, contemporary even for todays standards, that allowed Baillie Scott to accentuate the plan to the best of his ability.

4. Kniveton, G. N., Douglas Centenary 1896-1996, 2001

32. Ibid, P.101

5. Belchem, J., A New History of the Isle of Man: The modern period 1830-1999, p.232

33. Ibid, P.100

6. Kniveton, G. N., Douglas Centenary 1896-1996, 2001

34. Ibid, P.101

7. Belchem, J., A New History of the Isle of Man: The modern period 1830-1999, p.233

35. Ibid, P.101

8. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.83

36. Ibid, P.104

9. Paraphrased from Peter Kelly during interview recorded 6th February 2017 10. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.83 11. Ibid, P.83 12. Ibid, P.84 13. See Appendix [Peter Kelly Interview] 14. An extract from an interview with Peter Kelly, recorded 6th February 2017

28. Ibid, P.97

37. Ibid, P.104- Scott probably knew of Mackmurdo’s work by way of The Hobby Horse and his exhibition with the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society.

38. Ibid, P.104 39. Published as part of the January 1895 edition of The Studio journal in which he goes about describing features to improve domestic life. This acts greatly as a predecessor to his later publication, Houses and Gardnes (1906).

40. Davey, P., Arts and Crafts Architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise, 1980 41. A Newel is a central pole or support column to keep the stairs up.

15. Conservation document, Isle of Man Council, p.12

42. According to Kornwolfs’ List of Works, the interiors of Glen Falcon in Douglas and the Castletown Police Station were the last two designs finished before his departure in 1902.

16. Listed in Kornwolf ’s List of Works

43. Comment made by Peter Kelly February 6th 2017, due to his time at 35 Alexander Terrace.

17. The quotation is taken from Herman Muthesius, The English House, p.177

44. Extract from a discussion with Martyn Thomas, Director at Hardcastle and Thomas and led architect on the project.

18. The Inglenook ledge window dates back to roughly 1892 when North Lodge was built in Braddan, Isle of man

45. Muthesius, H. The English House, 2nd edn., 1979. P,49

19. Ballanard Brickworks were one of the few on the Island but as shipping and trade increased, many had to fight to stay in business. People chose to use stone, which the Island was plentiful of it.

46. Ibid, P.49

20. Paraphrased from Peter Kelly during interview recorded 6th February 2017. There is also numerous colour and texture similarities in the Manx Slate and Ballanard Brick

48. Paraphrased from Conversation online with Stephen Moore, Conservation Officer on Douglas Council

21. Extracted from M. H. Baillie Scott, Houses and Gardnes, Ch.18, The Soul of a House (1906)

49. Slater, G. J., The Victorian Web: An interactive guide, [Website] http://www.victorianweb.org/ art/design/bailliescott/chron.html

22. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.94

47. Ibid, P47

23. Ibid, P.94 24. Ibid, P.94 25. Ibid, P.95 26. Ibid, P.94

29

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

30

Blackwell ‘A house may possess that inscr utable quality of the tr ue Romance.

Not shallow, showy and pr etentious, as most moder n mansions ar e...’

M. H. Baillie Scott, 1906

Following his publications in The Studio, and the increased attention this gained him, Baillie Scott began receiving commissions on continental Europe, one of which was the interior fitting of the Dining and Drawing Rooms at Darmstadt.1 Carried out for the Grand Duke of Hesse in 1897, Scott’s job saw the white panelling in both rooms made rich with embossed leather friezes and Voyseylike birds and flowers executed by Charles Ashbee’s Guild of Handicraft.2 The opulence radiated in drawings published to The Building News, to a point where the furniture looks over-decorated and complicated. In reality, it was much more simplistic, flat surfaces, which bore painted inlaid floral ornaments. Scott was able to achieve this level of luxuriousness, whilst avoiding the sinuous intertwining Art Nouveau style, favouring a heraldic stiffness to the patterns instead.3 This commission won him a global reputation, and the start of a flourishing international practice. In the following decades several aristocratic mansions in Germany were built,4 and many other commissions in Switzerland, Romania (Another set of interiors for a relative of Duke Hesse), Russia, the United States and Canada were built. Despite this international success, he remained in the Isle of Man and continued work locally and in England, mainly concerned with the designs of small country homes and their interiors,5 and with that his passion for the Arts and Crafts aesthetic persisted. A year after the work at Darmstadt saw Baillie Scott’s work on display at Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.

The design was for a proposed scheme for a house located in Bowness-on-Windermere, the client a successful Manchester based Brewery owner, Sir Edward Holt.6 As previously mentioned, the Lake District during the latter periods of the 19th was a growingly

popular destination for the affluent upper class, and was now comfortably accessible to people like Holt, even from the centre of a large North- West city. A huge boom of large-scale housing was built in the Lake District as people tried to claim a piece of glamorous real estate. By the time Holt had requested a building to be designed in the region, The Arts and Crafts Movement was flourishing under the influence of Ruskin, a resident of Brantwood at Coniston since 1871.7 He was to pass away the same year Holt’s home was constructed.

The proposed country house was entitled Blackwell (its name is derived from a property opposite the site entitled Black Well, now called Blackwell Forge)8 and sat approximately a mile and half [See Appendix] from the rapidly expanding village of Bowness-onWindermere, due to the extension of the railway line to the Lake District. It location was carefully planned by Holt, who at the time was the Chairman of the Manchester Corporation Waterworks Committee and was instrumental in the development of the reservoir at Thirlmere, near Keswick, completed 1894.9 Due to a recommendation, Holt acquired land in the Haweswater Estate for which later, construction started on a dam for another large reservoir in this area, and was finished in 1929.10 From the comforts of a sizable holiday home on the Eastern side of Windermere developments like this could be monitored. Just like The Arts and Crafts Movement, Blackwell’s origins were founded through functional planning and affirmation in the beauty of the natural world.11 Opposite, Fig. 39: Blackwell House

31

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

The proposed design appeared in The Studio in 1901,12 and shows Blackwell slightly different than how the building looked upon completion. It is likely Scott did not attend a formal site visit before the sketch was drawn, instead remaining at his office at 7 Athol Street in the Isle of Man where it was designed.13 This is due to the flat nature in which this prototype sits on the land as the current building uses the steep relief it is built on to accentuate the western prospects of the lakeside. Like a lot of his work featured in the Isle of Man, the brick chimneystacks were rectilinear with noticeable tapering. These were altered to cater towards a more distinguishing Lakeland vernacular, replacing them instead with the familiar cylindrical chimney pots.14 One of the most provoking features of Blackwell is its ability to define itself as clearly as an Arts and Crafts building, and more so, integrate the Cumbrian vernacular so effortlessly.15 It was Scott’s largest house to date; which brought into question was his architectural maturity due to the manorial scale of the building, reminiscent of the Jacobean stylings of MacAndrew’s Mansion in Douglas, built in 1892.16

Blackwell is narrow and elongated, with a right-angled turn at the eastern side providing the servant quarters. It was orientated, unlike Voysey’s Broadleys, end on to the lake, so that the sunny southern aspect was realised to its full potential, taking precedence over the vistas to the west.17 However, in the White Drawing room the views were condensed and accentuated with the addition of one western facing bay window. [Fig.58] The eastern entrance in which visitors arrive at Blackwell is not the experience that Baillie Scott had intended, passing through the servant’s quarters to gain access to the centre of the house.18 Instead the Holt family and their guests would arrive on the northern drive, allowing Baillie Scott to slowly reveal the full length of the house, entering through the original front door.19 On entering (imagining that it was 1900 and the front door was still in use), one would be met with a spacious lobby, heavy built in impervious stone and wood panelling on both the walls and the ceiling.20 The floor tiles are the same material and pattern found in Kirk Braddan parish church on the Isle of Man. Peter Kelly21 correctly identified the link between Kirk Braddan and Blackwell, and having discovered the commission date of tilework, proved it was some of Baillie Scott’s oldest work on the Island.

32

Once passed the hall, two steps separate visitors from the long, low-level wooden gallery corridor. It is warm and inviting, allowing a natural flow of circulation once inside the house.22 Across the wooden hallway are part-glazed, movable partition doors, once opened these expose Blackwell’s central hall. Baillie Scott’s work has always shone on its ability to manipulate interior massing, Blackwell is no different, and actually proves as one of his most successful attempts. The plan is a loose, freer variation of that of the Red House23 possibly due to its much larger footprint. In the opening excerpts in Scott’s Houses and Gardnes: The Hall, he wrote: ‘Before considering the hall in the modern house, it is necessary to return to the most primitive form of plan, when the house itself was the hall and served for every function of the domestic life.’ 24

The message in which Scott refers to is that the current form of which modern buildings are planned around are becoming defunct, because of the way that people began to designate other rooms for performing different functions for example, eating, sleeping, cooking and for withdrawing into. This adaptation progressed and resulted in the hall itself becoming superfluous.25 It became a part of the plan, which only served to connect other rooms together; Scott deemed this new form of circulation as nonsensical. The modern architect had to take heed of this blind evolution, despite the obvious dissatisfaction of the existing model.

Scott speaks to a generation of architects ‘we must look back on the houses of the past, and consciously study the plan of the modern house so that it shall be adapted for the real needs of its occupants’26 This proposal of bringing back life to the Hall was the crux of Scott’s idea at Blackwell. It resulted in a two-story room, 28 by 46 feet in size, which both feels heavy and medieval, whilst retaining a light and spacious atmosphere. Scott was able to create a hall, which was purposeful because of the plan in which revolved around it: ‘From the front entrance, broad and low corridor gives access to drawing room, dining room, and kitchen premises, without infringing on the hall itself, so that it never becomes a passageroom.’ 27

Right, Fig.40: Interior ground floor hallway at Blackwell

Above, Fig.41: The Great Hall, Blackwell

His description is so important due to its relation to his 1894 publication to The Studio. ‘An Ideal Suburban House’ follows a plan that is dictated by a long corridor from which all the principle rooms are located. Blackwell owes a lot of its functionality from Scott’s earlier theories of internal massing (a comparison shows how similar they are). In the hypothetical house, the central hall is a two-storey room, with a gallery (described as a music gallery in this instance) located above the northern wall, underneath a recessed seating area accompanied by a bay window. In Blackwell, a small chamber has been acts as a viewing gallery overlooking the hall. This overhang creates the large inglenook fireplace with ample seating nestled underneath, creating an intimate corner to an otherwise sizeable room. In both sets of designs additional seating are recessed into the wall cavity and again act as buffer spaces. [Fig.42] Kornwolf wrote that ‘it is unusual to find such a dominating space in houses of this scale, where usually even the largest rooms lose their dominance because of the mass of many smaller rooms.’28 The smaller rooms are considerate factors in the achievement of this but it is also due to the inglenooks dividing the main hall into a series of intimate and expansive spaces, which created a distinct language for the user. He writes again: ‘Scott appears to have been determined, even in the large houses, to preserve both the living hall and the cottage scale. He succeeded admirably at Blackwell.’ 29

This feat in any house is impressive, but conquered on Blackwell’s scale is remarkable. This is due to way in which Scott delineates to the spaces and their relationship with one another.30 The hall houses an open staircase, which curls around the perimeter of the space, leading to an open screen-walled corridor repeating the style directly below; connection is therefore made to the space below. Even the bedrooms above feel connected due to the complex upper corridor in which they branch. The wooden panelled landing changes in level to break up the journey between the two atmospheres of public and private dwellings and at three separate intervals, the corridor expands to break the rhythm and create deep bays, which almost become separate rooms in themselves.31 It is through this opening and closing of temporary spaces which Baillie Scott creates

a fluid architectural language that interconnects seemingly separate spaces.

In the hypothetical house, the hall is located in the middle of a living area and dining area, where partitions allowed a much larger area in the centre of the house for functions. This idea was revolutionary, and was emulated in various examples on the Isle of Man.32 The largest commission there was Ivydene, which made use again of the sliding doors to allow the hall and dining room to interact. Due to the size of Blackwell’s central hall, grossly larger than Ivydene’s) this subtle connection between both rooms was achieved with an element of style. During large functions, Scott had designed it so servants could relay between the kitchen and the dining room to lay the table, before opening the doors to the main hall. This provided a transitional sort of event, and this left the hall as a space predominantly used for entertainment.

‘The subtle planning of the entire house and gardens encouraged the Holts to lead a less formal life, opening up the living space and removing some of the rigid definitions common to nineteenth century traditions.’ 33

Blackwell also mirrors the suburban house model in the way it is orientated. The southern aspect in both examples are set so principle rooms reap the benefits of prolonged sunlight, as do the upper bedrooms. In both examples, the kitchens are position away from direct sunlight whilst all the services are placed at the northern end of the house, still receiving good levels of daylight.

The resulting spaces are light and well balanced, with an abundance of comforting materiality to draw the user into the space. A good portion of Blackwell was allocated to servant’s quarters. It was Baillie Scott’s intention to provide servants with accommodation was comfortable and well lit. The house was ran by a set of servants who lived there year round and additionally ones who accompanied the Holts when they visited from Prestwich34 All these were provided sizeable accommodation, explaining Blackwell’s ‘L’ shape plan incorporating a service wing on the eastern end of the house.

It included a considerate amount of servant sleeping quarters as well as the kitchen, scullery, servant hall and two pantries. They were provided with their own entrance and staircase through the building

35

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Above, Fig.42: Slight recess in the corridor with seating and window

36

and the eastern entrance was positioned in between both the front and back entrances, meaning that when necessary, family and servants could easily interact with one another.

At the western end of the dark wooden panelled corridor the drawing room almost has an unearthly glow about itself, due to the stark contrast in colour and textures. The houses dark oak gives way soft white walls delicately inscribed in floral carvings and plasterwork.35 The natural light reflects off every surface and intensifying it’s atmosphere. The room’s two dominating features occupy opposite walls to one another. Firstly is the sizeable inglenook, the most complex and elegant in the house. A bay window breaks up the space and looks southwards, provides both light and a place to sit and converse in the height of its use. Secondly, on the western aspect, Baillie Scott has accentuated the spectacular views with a beautifully retrained bay window accompanied with seating.36 Placed deliberately in line with the corridor outside, it becomes the first sight visitors are greeted with on making a right turn into the house. It receives a large amount of natural light, piercing deep into the room, effortlessly drawing people towards the pending vista. In addition, the light reflecting off the lake illuminates the ceiling, highlighting the intricate plasterwork.37 [Fig.49]

Architectural form and composition were only half the reason why it set such precedence in The Arts and Crafts Movement.

Baillie Scott was in tune with the philosophy of John Ruskin, and throughout the house, he incorporated Ruskin’s belief that: ‘Good art flows from the craftsmen who create it’ 38

This simple ideology resonated with Scott throughout his career. Many architects were working towards what they associated as ‘Architectural Unity’ a term mainly used in terms of total design unity39 of a building. It became a quintessential part of The Arts and Crafts Movement, but one few decided to uphold entirely. However, total design freedom was not easily achieved,40 and architects spent a great deal of time and energy developing proposals to adapt to clients furniture. Baillie Scott’s argued that the furniture could look ‘all the more incongruous if the room themselves are architecturally

beautiful’.41 A compromise of sorts was to buy furnishings from antique dealers and dress the house in these pieces. Baillie Scott, Mackintosh and Voysey rejected the notion, but instead viewed a building, inside and out, as the product of a single mind,42 this was true design unity. He took this ethos whole-heartedly to Blackwell, where he practically had a hand in almost every stage of production.

Scott designed the furniture for most of his buildings, and this is where he developed the idea of an integrated interior.43

The best example of a worked integrated interior is surely Blackwell’s Hall, which he organised the entire space to fit with a prescribed set of furniture. This would coexist alongside oak laden walls (reclaimed from an 18th century Warwickshire Church)44and exposed timber roofing with moulds set between the rafters. A half-timbered façade reminiscent of his early work at Red House was replaced by roughcast whitewash and the half-timber made the transition into Blackwell’s interior, providing an almost Teutonic atmosphere.45 Whilst Scott had enjoyed the notion of relatively free plans of interconnecting spaces, he was rather firm in his choice of furniture in Blackwell’s Hall. In his watercolour design for the room, Scott suggested only a few carefully chosen pieces of movable furniture the billiard table, a blanket chest, and a chair next to the inglenook.46 [See Appendix] One of the most interesting pieces, a Manxman piano47 had been added during the restoration.

Scott had designed this piece, to be disguised as an elegant yet robust cupboard when packed away.48 Simpsons of Kendal49 had also produced a ‘Studio Chair’ for Edward Holt, a design originally meant for Simpsons own workshop.50 The Holt family had a tendency to reuse mismatched pieces of Victorian furniture51 so in addition to The Studio chair and according to Simpson’s workshop ledger he had submitted a few other entries for the Holt family. Recorded were two chairs, made from Walnut and Mahogany, and another seat in need of upholstering, in which the Holt family provided their own tapestry. Despite Baillie Scott’s attempts to instil a sense of unity, the Holts cluttered the hall with their possessions and mounted animal heads on the walls.52 Such decorating choices caused frustration in Scott, and made any attempt of a codified artistic space fruitless. It caused him to write:

37

Above, Fig.43: Panoramic of the Great Hall

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Left, Fig.44: Dining Room table and set at Blackwell Right, Fig.45: Dining Room Inglenook with seating and stainded glass windows

40

41

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery ‘Every architect who loves his work must have had his enthusiasm damped by a prophetic vision of the hideous furniture with which his client fills his rooms’.53

If the hall had not had much success in retaining its true artistic balance of furniture, the dining room was dressed considerably more tastefully once Scott had applied his touch. The wooden panelling that existing in the hall is recurring throughout the adjoining room and the ceiling is repeated to suggest it is simply an extension of the hall, recessed and more intimate for a different purpose. [FIG] Shows Simpsons Studio Chair with the original dining set in picture, which retains a strikingly similar look to the room. The Inglenook here was mirrored with that in the main hall, but in here used as a place of rest in which the guests would retire to between courses. Both Inglenooks were built from Ancaster Stone and Buttermere Green slate, lined with Delft tiles54 and were positioned facing one another across the hall. The rest of the furniture is again simply made; dressers built of oak and finished in modest brass fixtures. They were all purpose built for the space, and all designed by Baillie Scott. Furthermore, he was a designer who preferred to work with local craftspeople, and he positively encouraged them to draw out the qualities of their materials.55 Scott’s deliberation to respect and value materials and promote individualism in craftsmanship is traceable from Ruskin and Morris and ultimately gave his work merit in its own right.

The Drawing Room again shows a clear understanding of form and function and how to approach both with a sense of repose, because of this; it’s considered one of Baillie Scott’s finest interiors.56 In stark contrast to the masculine medieval hall, the Drawing Room poses delightfully feminine and romantic.57 The floor space is kept open, with the main features recessed into the walls, common of Baillie Scott. As mentioned before, one of Scott’s finest Inglenooks is located in Blackwell’s drawing room, accompanied by seating, a double mantel that extends around the room and ornate storage above and to the sides of the fireplace itself. The two other bays provide an intimate recession from the spacious room, intentionally left sparsely furnished for the spectacle

42

of the room to be emphasised.

Baillie Scott’s most impressive achievement of Blackwell is arguably the manifestation of an array of motifs, friezes, carvings and engraving that literally covered its interiors. Scott’s usage of natural forms in his decorations of Blackwell was numerous and lavish.58 The two main forms were the Rowan Tree (Mountain Ash) and the use of Oak exclusively throughout the building; whether it was in the form of panelling or used as a border to carve into. A clue as to why Baillie Scott used Rowan so feely at Blackwell can be found in one of the stained glass windows of the Main Hall, showing the family crest of the Holt family; two fleur-de-lys59 between two stylised Rowan trees with their characteristic clusters of red fruits.60 Indeed, in Houses and Gardnes, Scott writes his reasoning in the summary of Blackwell: ‘It was specially desired that the Mountain Ash should form the subject for decoration and this appears in form of carving, leaded glass, plaster-work, and stencilling in the various work’ 61

Oak had typified strength, durability and dependability for England for centuries.62 Furniture, buildings and ships were all reliant on the qualities Oak provided. Once trade in the West Indies had flourished, furniture relied on imported hardwoods such as Mahogany. Shipbuilding used Iron more frequently63 and the usage of Oak began to decline.64 It is no surprise then, that The Arts and Crafts Movement place special sentiment on the use of Oak in its architecture. Scott used it for making floors, ceilings, doors and built-in furniture.65 The importance of art and design being reinstated to the artist was strongly adhered to at Blackwell, and in part, this comes from endless attention to the smallest detail.66

Whilst Scott designed and produced drawings for almost the entire building, he preferred to work with local craftspeople, and he positively encouraged them to draw out the qualities of materials.67 He commissioned the crafts workshop Simpsons of Kendal to do just this. Using Oak, Arthur W. Simpson, designed and carved an intricate band of rowan trees around the perimeter of the hall. A Shand Kydd peacock frieze sits above the recycled Oak, based

on the design by W. Dennington, this was one of the few pieces not designed by Scott. This was actually added after the house was completed, an all white wall sits above Simpsons’ Rowan trees.

It was carried out in the same taste however, with the colourful Peacocks intertwined with a series of Rowan leaves blooming with the red berry. The dominance of figured Oak continues throughout the Dining Room, but the centrepiece comes in the form of a Baillie Scott block printed Hessian wall covering. Its original blue

background has long since faded to a brown that seamlessly fits in with the abundance of Oak in the room. Again, this depicts the Rowan Tree showing its branches bearing the spoils of spring and autumn. Below the Rowan trees, lies a ‘flowery mead’ made up of two species, the Blue Harebell and Scottish Bluebell. Species native to the Lake District,68 it is another indication that Scott found inspiration from his immediate environment.

Left, Fig.46: Detailing on the upper corridor Right, Fig.47: Dining Room Hessian Wallpaper Below, Fig 48: Peacock Inspired Frieze in the Great Hall

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

It is the Drawing Room in which the intricacies are accentuated to a brilliant scale. It seems the rooms’ only untouched surface is the floor you walk on. The ceiling is made up of 48 plaster panels moulded to show four sharply delineated plant motifs: the leaves and fruits of Hawthorn and Rowan, the acorns of Oak and the semi-double flowers of a Rose. Immediately below the ceiling is a wide strip running the circumference of the room, adorned in the Rowan branches again. Both the ceiling decoration and this upper frieze have utilised the efficiency of fibrous plaster69 so that the repetition has enabled such means. The Inglenook is heavily

44

detailed to the same standard. Iron and enamelled firedogs with stylised daisies are placed around the large hearth, which is made up of stonework and deep blue mosaics (designed by William De Morgan). Moreover, decorated with three large pink and black tiles, seen first at Kirk Braddan [Fig.50] before appearing in the Entrance at Blackwell. To the side of the Inglenook is another stained window depicting slender Ottoman Tulips. There stems are curved and their leaves are more sinuous.71 In addition to that, birds in flight are seen weaving between the exotic flowers.

The installation of colour in his rooms was of the upmost importance too, although he really stuck to three basic colour schemes. The first was dark, associated with ‘masculine’ rooms such as the Hall or Dining room. The other two relied on whites and bright colours. Greens, golden, pinks, purples and blues were often used, keeping Scott’s colour palette light. This differed from the colour palettes of designers and artists a generation before, such as John Ruskin and Richard Shaw, who instead used a heavy tone for the work. This variation really demonstrates the way in which Scott shaped future interior design.

Above, Fig.49: Fibrous Plaster detailing on the ceiling.

Left, Fig.50: Tiles from the Drawing room are similar to that found at Braddan, Isle of Man. Below, Fig.51: Simpsons of Kendal intricate Oak carving, found throughout Blackwell.

Opposite, Fig.52: Scott’s finest Inglenook fireplace, in the White Drawing Room.

Despite only detailing the principle rooms, a depiction of the overall craftsmanship is achieved nevertheless. Baillie Scott spent so much time and attention to this building its surprising that it only took 2 years for it to be built. The level of crafts omitted to every inch, the composition of its the form, the attention to light and its interior atmosphere by choice of materiality and colour was so comprehensive72 it was a shame that the resulting decades had Blackwell see several different occupants. The Holt had frequently visited Blackwell for the first years of the 20th century. Edward Holt’s son, Joseph was a keen oarsman and enjoyed the close proximity to the Lakeside. This era of happiness was cut short with the outbreak of the First World War. A year later, Joseph was killed in Gallipoli.73 This started the decline of Blackwell’s uses, and in 1928, Edward Holt passed away.74 His second oldest son inherited the house but the family only very regularly visited and it became empty apart from a skeleton staff of servants maintaining it. Following these years, it was leased out numerous times but never owned seeing it lay dormant when the Second World War forced Operation Pied Piper into action.75 This gave the building a new lease of life when the pupils of Huyton College were evacuated there. It became a temporary school during the war but then extended this to become a permanent facility until 1976 when it closed indefinitely.76 The next owner leased the place out to English nature until 1997 and again the future of what was a grade II* listed house became very unclear.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Notes

Hall could act as a separate room without the need to be opened up to other principle rooms.

It had the space in which Scott could realise stronger interior potential.

1. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.11

24. Quote from Baillie Scott’s Houses and Gardnes, 1906. P.17

2. Davey, P., Arts and Crafts Architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise, 1980. P.167. As previously discussed, though Voysey may have introduced the style, Baillie Scott adopted the usage of birds in flight and became a hallmark of his interior Design.

25. Ibid, P.17

3. Davey, P., Arts and Crafts Architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise, 1980. P.167

27. Ibid, P.167

4. Collated information from Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972, Found in the Appendix List of Works (P.529-569)

28. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.184

5. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.XXIII

29. Ibid. P.184

6. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014. P.74 7. Ibid, P.15 8. Sourced from DigiMap. Data from maps dated circa 1890’s show the then empty Blackwell site and a property named Black Well across the road. The 1910’s information shows Blackwell House and the newly named Blackwell Forge in the place of Black Well.

26. Ibid, P.18

30. Ibid, P.184 31. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.31 32. See these and more Isle of Man buildings in the List of Works, APPENDIX and find more information on them.

9. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.7

33. Quoted from u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.31.

A number of his commissions were aimed at entertainment due to the nature of his clients, often wealthy businessmen.

10. Ibid, P.7

34. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.35

11.Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.9, The text refers to C.R.Ashbee, Ernest Gimson and Eric Gill who abandoned London moved to the English countryside to seek ‘sweetness’ and beauty, finding there a respite from the metropolitan way of life.

35. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014 P.79

12. Quoted from u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P13, original text from The Studio, 1901.

36. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.29 37. Ibid, P.29 38. Ibid, P.24

14. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.13

39. Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.50. The principle of Design unity applied as much to the interior of an Arts and Crafts building as to its environment. As exterior Design reflected interior function and form, so too ceiling, floor and wall finishes, furniture, textiles and metalwork played their part in the whole Design.

15. Ibid, P.14

40 Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.50

16. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972 P.183. In particular, this was reference to the monumental gables that dominate the garden façade.

41. Ibid, P.50

17. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014 P.75

43. This was the culmination of various materials and forms brought together to create a unique design aesthetic, normally handcrafted woods such as oak, the preferred material in The Arts and Crafts Movement. They replaced expensive, imported highly finished woods and ceramics.

13. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.83 Information verified by Peter Kelly.

18. Ibid, P.75 19. Ibid, P.75 20. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.31

42. Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, 1991. P.51

44. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.24

21. Peter Kelly MBE is an architect by training, as well as an architectural historian. He is chairman of the IoM Victorian society and acts as Parish of the Guard at Onchan, Isle of Man, where he resides.

45. The word Teutonic refers to a Germanic tribe who settled in Modern day Denmark, dating back to the Roman era (2nd Century BC). They were associated with a style of Architecture heavily influenced by the Teutonic Order, a catholic religious order founded in 1190, reminiscent of a Germanic Romanesque style.

22. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014 P.79

46. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014, P.149

23. Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. P.184, Red House was one of Baillie Scott’s successful schemes. Like Blackwell, it too had a hall in which was centrally located. Due to the different sizes of the houses, Blackwell’s

46

47. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.24 The Manxman piano was an attempt to stylise the upright, or cottage piano. The piano’s form closest representation was of a Spanish 17th century chest, raised up on stands, known as a Vargueno.

Quoted from the Victoria & Albert Archive Collection: Manxman. http://collections.vam. ac.uk/item/O78955/manxman-manxman-piano-baillie-scott-mackay/ [Website], accessed 20th February 2017.

48. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.24 49. Arthur W. Simpson of Kendal was a prolific craftsman and responsible for a large number of work carried out at Blackwell, some of this will be highlighted in the section detailing his work and others.

50. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014 P.149 51. Ibid, P.149 52. Ibid, P.149 53. Quotation taken from Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts H ouses in the Lake District, 2014, P.149. Original text from M. H. Baillie Scott, ‘An Ideal Suburban House: The Studio’, Vol.4, 1894

68. Ingram, D., The Flora of Blackwell, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.14 69. Fibrous Plaster is mechanized means of producing reliefs into ceilings where other methods are arduous and time consuming. Pressing a paper-like material through a matrix forms thin pieces and these are screwed onto the ceiling.

70. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2014 P.168 71. Ingram, D., The Flora of Blackwell, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.16 72. Grayford, M., A Man with Good Ideas about the House, [Website], 1999.

73. The Battle of Gallipoli was a military campaign that took place in the Gallipoli peninsula in the Ottoman Empire from April 1915 to January 1916. In this time, the total casualties were estimated at over 550,000. Many British soldiers lost their lives.

74. Ingram, D., The Flora of Blackwell, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.39 75. Operation Pied Piper occurred due to the potential threat of blitzkrieg bombing in UK’s largest cities. It became the largest single displacement of British people in recorded history, with 3.75 million being moved, mostly children.

76. Ibid, P.39

54. Quoted from, u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014.

P.24 Ancaster Stone is an Oolitic Limestone, its name is derived from the town it was quarried at, near Lincoln. Buttermere Slate was quarried in the Westmoreland region, either Keswick or Coniston. Scott also used Delft tiles, belonging to the larger collection of Delftware, blue and white pottery. Popular in the Delft region in approximately the 16th century. Delft tiles, which approximately 800 million were made in the 17th and 18th century, are found in Blackwell and are original, therefore were approximately 100 years old at the time of inquisition.

55. Ibid, P.29 56. Ibid, P.29 57. Ibid, P.29 58. Ingram, D., The Flora of Blackwell, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.5 59. The English translation is ‘Flower of the Lily’ and is a stylised flower used in decorative Design or often used in family crests, like in the case of the Holts.

60. Ibid, P.5 61. Quoted from, Scott, M. H. B., Houses and Gardnes: Blackwell, 1906, P.167 62. Ingram, D., The Flora of Blackwell, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.6 63. Iron was introduced in the early parts of the 19th century to reinforce weak areas of wooden hulls. Soon after Iron was used in mainframes before entire superstructure used wrought Iron in much the same way wooden hulls were crafted. The Ironclad SS Great Britain’s first maiden voyage was in 1843.

64. Ibid, P.6 65. Ibid, P.6 66. Grayford, M., A Man with Good Ideas about the House, [Website], 1999. In Grayfords writing he goes onto say ‘… the door handles and window catches are a study in themselvesvaried and beautiful and, of course, designed by Baillie Scott. The same applies to the fire surrounds- a different colour scheme and conception for every room- the amazingly thin mantal, the gutters, the drainpipes. In fact, the same applies to everything.

67. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.24

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Above, Fig.53: Blackwell before the exterior was renovated, ca.1995

Discussions and Conclusion ‘R ar ely so indi vidualistic as Voysey or expensi ve-looking as Lutyens, Baillie Scott’s designs w er e like himself - modest and countrified... he was the for er unner in designing good small houses and our centur y has been the centur y of the small house’ John Betjeman, 1945 Blackwell during the 20th Century

The late 1990’s saw Blackwell left relatively disused and its age began to show. The whitewash walls distressed and greyed and the gardens were left unkempt. In 1997, Lakeland Arts saw an opportunity to save the building before its condition worsened.

Despite not having the available funds, they approached the buy the property before it was on sale.1 Throughout difficult negotiations and tremendous hard work, the £850,000 needed to purchase the house was gathered. Lakeland Arts Trust bought Blackwell in 1999, a deal in which prompted the Heritage Lottery Fund to provide the additional £2.45 million estimated to complete the Renovation.

Despite the funding it was a difficult challenge restoring a building that hadn’t been maintained properly since the 1940’s.

Diane Haigh2 led the project with Allies and Morrison Architects, and William Anelay Ltd carried out the refurbishment.

The first stage of the process was spent analysing the building in its current state. Despite its uses over the recent decades, Blackwell had retained a great deal of its features. This was due partially due to the fact many of the fireplaces were boarded up and preserved.

The delicate carvings and plastering was also protected, behind rows of cabinets.3 They began work by removing the roof, re-roofing the Westmorland slates and adding felt to the lining to make it watertight and insulated.4 Once the rest of the building was deemed watertight,

they began analysing which rooms should be restored to their original furnishing and finish and which should be altered and renovated.

Sensibly, the principle ground floor rooms- Central Hall, Dining Room and White Drawing Room- were all retained and carefully restored. The eastern wing, accommodating the kitchen, sculleries and pantries for servants, were removed to make way for a shop, a dining area and a new, smaller kitchen.5 This divided the house in a similar way in which the Holts would have arranged it, one wing for services and one for entertainment and pleasure. When assessing rooms upstairs the same process was repeated. Two examples of the original bedrooms have been recreated for the viewer, whilst the rest have been transformed into galleries and educational spaces.

The remaining rooms on the upper floors (the original servants accommodation) have been turned into the Library, Archives and staff offices. The house has retained a lot of the original décor however, and remains true to its heritage as an Arts and Crafts house. The acquisition and restoration took just over two years and involved a great number of specialists in a variety of fields.6 In September 2001, little over a century from when Blackwell was first built for Edward Holt, HRH The Prince of Wales opened it to the public. The same year, English Heritage raised Blackwell’s level of protection to the highest category, Grade I.7

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Left Fig.54: During the process of removing and repairin Blackwell’s roof, ca.1998 Below, Fig.55: Carefully repairing the Simpsons Oak carving

50

Blackwell in the 21st Century

Blackwell is a curious building in the sense that, although built as a holiday home for a lucrative family in the early 20th century, it has since altered its primary functions through the occupation of various institutions, providing depth and meaning to its history. Yet now (and for the best part of two decades) it has been operating as an educational facility, gallery and a protected architectural landmark. It is important to question which aspect of Blackwell do most people find most compelling to visit. Why do most people enjoy their experience so thoroughly? Its new function, an Art Gallery and Visitor Centre have ensured a viable use for the building in the near future. Hosting various exhibitions, some of which are national, Lakeland Arts Trust regularly displays pieces that tap into the ingenuity of Scott’s work at Blackwell. Griet Beyaert & Paul Miller are inspired by the use of light within Baillie Scott’s architecture with their exhibition The Glass Cyphers,8 consisting of site-responsive glass, sound and video installation. Throughout the historic interior, the artists place work that will emphasise the intricate carvings and stained glass that lie at the heart of Blackwell inspiration.9

From an architectural stance, the appeal comes from the sense of design unity that still exists in the house today. The 19th century designers strived to achieve a space that was able to succeed as an architectural space as well as a room in which everything that decorated the architecture felt personal and sentimental. There is an undeniable sense of peace that exists in the house at all times of the day, due to the composure of the light, materiality and uninterrupted space. This was Baillie Scott’s intention:

‘... to provide a space of still, quiet earnestness which seems to lull and soothe the spirit with promises of peace’ 10

The window play in the house allows morning and evening sun into the depths of the building leading to very few dark corners.

As mentioned in previous chapters Blackwell pairs this ingenuity of architectural planning with the nuances of intricate interior design.

The works of Simpsons of Kendal and Dennington and Shand Kydd Ltd, alongside Scott himself produced most of the designs and furniture that were to decorate the house. The language of natural motifs, carvings and plasterwork that existed in every part of the house was extensive and elaborate; this contrasted the relatively minimal approach to the architectural form. The usage of Rowan and Oak as the core inspiration demonstrates Scott’s attraction to the natural world. Inside the house, an abundance of bountiful trees displayed in stained glass windows can be seen overlooking Lake Windermere and further afield, the Coniston fells. It is easy to share his sentiment.

With thanks to Diane Haigh and Allies and Morrison, Blackwell has the ability to show The Arts and Crafts Movement through an educational medium whilst also being able to showcase the qualities of its architecture for the user to fully experience. The synergy of Blackwell is effective in this way, because of its ability to do both. It is then ironic that much of this history may have been lost until the late 90’s if the Holt’s had decided to sell the property a lot sooner. It is difficult to suggest how the building would appear now, if for example, it had stayed in the private market.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Above, Fig.56: Griet Beyaert & Paul Miller’s ‘Glass Cyphers’ on display at Blackwell between Feb’17 and Jun’18.

Left, Fig.57: A cosy Inglenook seat in the Great Hall

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Conclusion

What differentiates Blackwell from other examples of Arts and Crafts buildings is not its architectural quality or trueness to The Arts and Crafts Movement (Although it is undeniable that Blackwell’s execution is one of it’s finest). It comes from the importance in which Blackwell transitioned from a Arts and Crafts House, to a public building. Out of a considerate list of Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District,11 only Brockhole (Located three miles north of Blackwell) is currently open to the public and used in this capacity. Blackwell is therefore immediately more engaging just because of the sheer rarity seeing building of this genre from this perspective. At Blackwell, there is a sense of irony in that a building originally intended for the upper fringes of society now displays artwork from the general public.12 The ability to explore and physically experience Blackwell’s interiors as well as its exteriors is paramount in the success in which it operates. Its principle rooms have been immortalised acting an interactive museum. Now visitors can sit in Scott’s Inglenooks, walk his corridors and look from a window, which Scott had intentionally placed. The intimacy one receives from spending time within a building of this calibre is something that cannot be replicated from simply standing outside it, let alone from imagery or videos.

This piece has been to study the Isle of Man in conjunction with Baillie Scott’s own architectural evolution. This has brought to light numerous buildings that have since been altered and renovated, without the level of protection Blackwell was fortunate enough to

have received. The form and function of Scott’s work was a defining character, which was tarnished when altered. When considered in the same scenario, some of Scott’s older work, such as Oakleigh and Red House display Scott’s experimental architectural features.

However, due to various extension (especially at Red House) Baillie Scott’s work is made considerably less significant.13 His work in the Isle of Man was surely, in evolutionary terms, less significant than his work at Blackwell for example, where he entered his architectural maturity and adopted a style closer to the Arts and Crafts aesthetic.

However it is difficult to compare the legacies of both Blackwell and his work on the Isle of Man as their architectural evolution continued to unfold long after their architect had passed away. It is therefore probably fairer to suggest that work such as Red House and Oakleigh had been hindered by alterations to their structures, inside and out, so at the very least the essence of Baillie Scott’s work was surely stifled. These buildings are also privately owned, further restricting the public accessing them to appreciate Scott’s work. By total contrast, Blackwell displays no major renovation work (visible on the exterior anyway) and it allows the visitor to appreciate the same building as Holt had done a century ago. The inside continues this, with the restoration respecting Scott’s work whilst allowing intimate access to the public. The 21st century Blackwell now poises effortlessly between an art gallery and a beautiful example of a country house. Ultimately it has become the perfect location to study, experience and fall in the love with The Arts and Crafts Movement.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Left, Fig.58: Drawing Room bay window with views out to the Lake

54

Notes 1. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.7 2. Diane Haigh is an architect with vast experience in conservation and restorations. Prior to her work at Blackwell with Allies and Morrison she wrote the book, Baillie Scott: The Artistic House, that contains a detailed survey of his work built before and after Blackwell and a comprehensive study on The Arts and Crafts Movement.

3. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.7 4. Quoted from Peter Kelly during an interview, recorded 6th February 2017. Appendix 5. Ibid, Appendix 6. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, Lakeland Arts Guidebook, 2014. P.41 7. Ibid, P.41 8. u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House: Griet Beyaert & Paul Miller The Light Within [Online], 2016.

9. Ibid, [Online], 2016 10. Quoted from Scott, M. H. B., Houses and Gardnes: The Soul of the House, 1906, P.36 11. Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District: Places to Visit, 2014.

P.220 A list made from a variety of Arts and Crafts houses near the Lake District. Hyde and Whittaker have a detailed analysis made on all these buildings.

12. Ibid, P.7 13. Morris. D., Architect urges Isle of Man to Look After Heritage, [Online], 2015.

Right, Fig.59: Detail on window latch Above, Fig.60: Waterhead displaying Holt initials and date of construction, 1900.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Closing Words

The poet John Betjeman first met Baillie Scott whilst working at the Architectural Review. Betjeman wrote of Scott’s work, his life and his passions during and after his death, in 1945. A particular quote, now displayed in the Manx Journal, Vol. VII, No. 84, P.77-80, is a reaction of Scott to a review of some of his work is particularly appropriate: ‘He has built more houses that have done less harm to the landscape than any living architect’

To the average architect, in the midst of the Modernist Movement, this statement felt trivial. To the contemporary issues that face the architects and designers of today, its implications are resounding. The ability to affect the architectural landscape to the extent Scott, did whilst retaining a modest sense of accountability and passion for the natural world was very rare. It still is today.

Scott was involved in the construction of over 300 buildings during his long career. His affinity to the natural world drove his work. he built houses, delicately situated in nature, which improved the social aspect of the living model and ultimately made houses beautiful from their simplicity. In the same Manx Journal, Betjeman wrote: ‘Scott was happiest in the country, an adored husband, father and grandfather, the comfortable centre of his hospitable world’

In this sense, at least, his favourite commission should be Blackwell. It unified the natural beauty of the Lakeland picturesque, the simplistic, stripped back vernaculars of its architecture and the social setting for the Victorian gentry. It was the closest depiction of The Arts and Crafts Movement Baillie Scott created only because these factors had aligned.

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It does give the reader solace to know that his legacy at Blackwell has not been tarnished, but immortalised. A century after it was built, it perfectly exhibits the two of the most important things in Baillie Scott’s life, now so fittingly inscribed on his gravestone:

‘He loved nature, and next to nature, art’. Baillie Scott 1865-1945

Opposite, Fig. 61: Blackwell, Looking West in Winter

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Illustrations References Fig.1 https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Great_Exhibition,_Transept_looking_south,_HF_Talbot,_1851.jpg Fig.2 http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/exhibitions/web/morris/images/morris.jpg Fig.3 u, a., Red House: Bexleyheath a National Trust Guidebook, 3rd edn, National Trust, Swindon, 2010 Fig.4 https://www.skinnerinc.com/news/tag/shaker-furniture/ Fig.5 Own Image, 2017 Fig.6 https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Windermere2005-21.JPG/1200px-Windermere2005-21.JPG Fig.7 http://www.grizedale.org/blogs/blog/2008/9 Fig.8 Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, Frances Lincoln Publishers, United Kingdom, 2016 Fig.9 Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, Frances Lincoln Publishers, United Kingdom, 2016 Fig.10 http://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/planning/conservationareas/rydalca Fig.11 https://st.hzcdn.com/fimgs/ef41f73c02e916e4_6766-w500-h400-b0-p0-rustic-living-room.jpg Fig.12 Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in the Lake District, Frances

Fig.18 Own Image, 2017 Fig.19Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of modern design, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1972.

Fig.20 Own Image, 2017 Fig.21Fig.22 Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of modern design, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1972.

Fig.22 Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of modern design, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1972.

Fig.23 Own Image, 2017 Fig.24Fig.22 Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of modern design, TheJohns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1972.

Fig.25 Own Image, 2017 Fig.26Manx Archives and Journals Fig.27 Manx Archives and Journals Fig.28 Own Image, 2017

Lincoln Publishers, United Kingdom, 2014

Fig.29 Manx Archives and Journals

Fig.13 Ibid, 2014

Fig.30 Manx Archives and Journals

Fig.14 Ibid, 2014

Fig.31 The Studio, Vol. IV, 1894

Fig.15 http://www.scottisharchitects.org.uk/de/image_archive/2010_12_23_ scott/scr_Baillie_Scott_reduced.jpg Fig.16 Own Image, 2017 Fig.17 http://www.nostalgiastore.co.uk/files/douglas-iom8.jpg

58

Fig.32 Own Image, 2017 Fig.33 Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of modern design, TheJohns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1972.

Fig.34Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of modern design, TheJohns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1972.

Fig.51 Ibid, 2017

Fig.35 Own Image, 2017

Fig.52 Ibid, 2017

Fig.36 Ibid, 2017

Fig.53 https://thebigmantheprettyoneandtheanimal.files.wordpress. com/2014/07/photo-2014-06-24-16-44-33.jpg

Fig.37 Ibid, 2017 Fig.38 Ibid, 2017

Fig.54 Ibid, 2014 Fig.55 https://flickeringlamps.com/2015/09/19/exploring-blackwell-a-stunning-

Fig.39 Ibid, 2017

arts-and-crafts-house-in-the-heart-of-the-lake-district/

Fig.40 Ibid, 2017

Fig.56 http://theglasscyphers.uk/index.php/2017/02/02/new-installa-

Fig.41 Ibid, 2017 Fig.42 Ibid, 2017 Fig.43 Ibid, 2017 Fig.44 Ibid, 2017 Fig.45 Ibid, 2017

tion-and-exhibition-at-blackwell-windermere/ Fig.57 Own Image, 2017 Fig.58 Ibid, 2017 Fig.59 Ibid, 2017 Fig.60 Own Image, 2017 Fig.61 Own Image, 2017

Fig.46 Ibid, 2017 Fig.47 u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House: Lakeland Arts Guidebook, Lakeland Arts, Kendal, 2014.

Fig.48 Own Image, 2017 Fig.49 Ibid, 2017 Fig.50 Ibid, 2017

59

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Bibliogrpahy Books

Aslet, C., The Arts and Crafts Country House: From

the Archives of Country Life, Aurum Press Ltd, London, 2011

Belchem, J., A New History of the Isle of Man: The modern period 1830-1999, 5th ed.n, Liverpool University Press, 2001

Brunskill, R.W. & Padfield, P.W., Traditional buildings of Cumbria: The county of the lakes, Orion (an Imprint of The Orion Publishing Group Ltd), London, 2002.

Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts and Crafts Movement, Thames and Hudson Ltd, London, 1991.

Cole, D., The art of CFA Voysey: English pioneer

modernist architect & designer, Images Publishing Group, Australia, 2015.

Davey, P., Arts and Crafts Architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise, Architectural Press, London, 1980.

Haigh, D., Baillie Scott: The Artistic House, Wiley, John & Sons, London, 1995.

Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts and Crafts houses in

the Lake District, Frances Lincoln Publishers,

United Kingdom, 2016

Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and

Crafts Movement: Pioneers of modern design, The

Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1972.

60

Kniveton, G. N., Douglas Centenary 1896-1996, The

Manx Experience, Isle of Man, 2001

Lethaby, W. R., Architecture, Mysticism and Myth, Percival & Co, London, 1891.

Muthesius, H. The English House, 2nd edn., WileyBlackwell, London, 1979.

Scott, M.H.B., Houses and Gardnes, George Newnes Limited, London, 1906.

Stickley , G., The Best of the Craftsman Homes, California, Peregrine Smith Incorporated, 1979, P.6

Interviews/ Online Correspondence

Kelly, P. Delivered a PowerPoint presentation to Joel

Barnes, 2017, Onchan Village hall, Isle of Man.

Kelly, P., interviewed by Joel Barnes, 2017, Onchan Village Hall, Isle of Man.

Moore, S., Personal Communication via Email, Recorded February 7th 2017.

Moore, S., Personal Communication via Email, Recorded February 13th 2017.

Guidebooks

Ingram, D., The Flora of Blackwell: Lakeland Arts Guidebook, Lakeland Arts, Kendal, 2014

u.a, Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House: Lakeland Arts Guidebook, Lakeland Arts, Kendal, 2014.

u, a., Red House: Bexleyheath a National Trust Guidebook, 3rd edn, National Trust, Swindon, 2010

Websites/Blogs

u.a., Victoria and Albert Museum: The Arts & Crafts Movement [Website], 2016,

Barton, R., Blackwell House, Cumbria: Built by a

millionaire, rebuilt by the Lottery, [Website], 2001,

Watson, A., Art is where the home is: How Arts & Crafts

http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/

still influence architects today, [Website], 2014, http:// blackwell-house-cumbria-built-by-a-millionaire-restored-

www.express.co.uk/life-style/property/530551/

by-the-lottery-9167303.html , accessed 17th February 2017.

How-Arts-Crafts-still-influence-architects-today,

accessed 16th February 2017.

Caroline, Flickering Lamps: Exploring Blackwell, a

stunning Arts and Crafts House in the Heart of Primary Research

the Lake District, [Web Blog], 19th September 2015,

https:// flickeringlamps.com/2015/09/19/exploring-

Conducted a day trip to the Isle of Man and spoke to

blackwell-a-stunning-arts-and-crafts-house-in-the-heart-of- various people who were involved in the works of Baillie

the-lake-district/, accessed 22nd February 2017

Scott in some capacity. Peter Kelly is an Architectural

Historian, with vast experiences with Scott and his

Dixon, A. C., Lake District: Master of the Craft, [Website],

contemporaries, especially on the Island.Stephen Moore

2001, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/

was a conservation officer at Douglas Council and

europe/uk/lakedistrictandcumbria/718970/Lake-District- too had vast knowledge of Baillie Scott’s work. His

Master-of-the-craft.html, accessed 16th February.

knowledge of conservation and restoration was insightful.

Karen Hardcastle and Martyn Thomas provided me

Grayford, M., A Man with Good Ideas about the

with photographs and explained the renovation being House, [Website], 1999, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

undertaken at Thornbank, a Scott building.

culture/4716631/A-man-with-good-ideas-about-the-

house.html, accessed 16th February 2017

I visited Blackwell House in Bowness numerous times to

collate data, take pictures and speak to memebers of staff.

Morris. D., Architect urges Isle of Man to Look

This was advantageous in providing me with excellent

After Heritage, [Online], 2015 http://

imagery and to understand the place to a greater extent

artsandcraftschurch.org/ architect-urges-isle-of-

than visitng its website.

man-to-look-after-heritage/ accessed 24th February 2017

u.a., Blackwell: The Arts and Crafts House, [Website], 2016, https://www.blackwell.org.uk/ accessed 30th November 2016.

u. a., Victoria and Albert Archive Collections, 2017, [Website], http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O78955/ manxman-manxman-piano-baillie-scott-mackay/, accessed 16th February.

61

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Journals

Betjeman, J., M.H. Baillie Scott. In Journal of the Manx Museum Vol VII, No 84, P. 77-80

Hill, R.G., The Building News: An Index to The Builder and The Building News, 21st April, 1893 [Website], http://www.builderindex.org/ accessed December 1st, 2016.

White, J.G., Holme, C & H., The Studio: an illustrated magazine of fine and applied art, The Studio Ltd, available from Internet Archives, [accessed 30th November 2016], The Studio Editions:

• • • •

1895: An Ideal Suburban House 1895: Fireplace in the Suburban House 1897: A Small Country House 1900: A Country Cottage

Letters

• • • • •

62

Letter to Mr and Mrs J. A. Ranscombe from IoM Planning committee, Regarding the Protection of Red House, [Online PDF] [https://www. gov. im/media/632255/0500160regbldredhouse.pdf], 1996. Accessed 1st December 2016. Several more Isle of Man Planning Committee letter for the following buildings: Hollybank Inglenook Ivydene Myrtlebank Oakleigh

Appendix

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Biography of Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott This Biography is a truncated document to cover the periods discussed in the main body of text with the addition of general information of Baillie Scott’s life. A few additions have been made to include some of the missing material. Research and sourced by Tony Geering, Decorative Values Ltd., Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott (1865-1945), [Online], http://www.decorativevalues.co.uk/des8. html, accessed 23rd February 2017.

1865

Born 23 October at Beards Hill, St. Peter’s, near Ramsgate, Kent.

1883

Sent to the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester, in October, to study for a degree in “Scientific Farming and Estate Management”.

1885

1886-1889

1889

1889-1893

1891

64

the Isle of Man School of Art, Douglas and, like Archibald Knox, gains Art Class Teacher’s Certificate. Knox later collaborates with Baillie Scott on interior commissions.

1889-1899

Exhibits paintings and other works in the Isle of Man Fine Art and Industrial Guild’s annua exhibitions at ‘The Palace’, Douglas.

1892

Sets up own practice at 23 Athol Street, Douglas.

Constructs earliest known built commission, Braddan Cemetery Office, Isle of Man.

1892

Builds the cemetery office and designs the stained glass for the cemetery chapel at Braddan.

1892 Graduates, in December, with honours in drawing and science, and awarded the society’s silver 1892-1893 medal.

Articled to Major C.E. Davis, City Architect of 1893 Bath. Lodges for at least 1 year with Stephen

Rawlings, a mason and builder, of Athol House,

Batheaston.

Marries Florence Kate Nash, a descendent of

Beau Nash, at Batheaston Parish Church on 16 February. Holidays in and then relocates to Isle of 1893-1894 Man.

Lives at 35 Alexander Terrace, Douglas. Begins by working for Fred Saunderson, a surveyor and land 1894 agent, at 7 Athol Street, Douglas. Daughter, Enid

Maud Mackay Baillie Scott, born 20 November 1889. Son, Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott III, born 13 1894 May 1891.

Attends classes in geometry and drawing at

Builds North Lodge, first examples of a plethora of Baillie Scott features. See Appendix Commissions and builds Oakleigh House. Strong use of half timbering here.

Moves to and relocates practice to the ‘Red House’, built to his own design. Probably funded from fees for his first major commission, ‘The MacAndrew House’, Onchan, Isle of Man. Known as The Mansion, renovated and since demolished.

Commissions and builds Ivydene, his largest existing house on the Isle of Man. Publishes “An Ideal Suburban House” in the January issue of The Studio. Realised as Bexton Croft, Knutsford, Cheshire (1894-1896).

Begins to regularly exhibit work in the Architectural Room of the Royal Academy of Arts.

Appendix 1895

Forms partnership with Henry Seton Morris, thought to have also been a pupil of Davis, who sets up an office in both names at 30 Great James Street, London. Exhibit entrance design for a house, for Manx author Hall Caine, at the Royal Academy.

1895-1896

Commissions and builds Hollybank and Ivybank, semi-detached houses in the Arts and Crafts style.

1896-1897

Commission and builds Leafield and Braefield, semi-detached houses on the same estate The Mansion used to stand.

1897

Redecorates and furnishes the dining and drawing rooms of the Ducal Palace at Darmstadt, for the Grand Duke, Ernst-Ludwig of Hesse. C.R. Ashbee’s Guild of Handicraft make the furniture, light-fixtures and metalwork to Baillie Scott’s designs. 1898 Decorates and furnishes the tree- top, log-cabin retreat, ‘Le Nid’, for the 23-year old Princess Marie of Rumania. 1901 Wins highest prize with his design, ‘Dulce Domum’, for the ‘Haus eines Kunstfreundes’ or ‘House for an art lover’ competition. C.R. Mackintosh’s entry, ‘Der Vogel’, although disqualified due to an insufficient submission of perspectives, is awarded a purchase prize (posthumously constructed in Bellahouston Park, Glasgow, in 1996).

1898

Baillie Scott put forward a design for a large country house in the Lake District in the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition. Its client is Sir Edward Holt, and he wins with his scheme.

1900

Commissions and builds Blackwell House, arguably his finest ever piece of Arts and Crafts Architecture. Designs a vast part of the house

from his office at 7 Athol Street, Douglas.

1901

Sells ‘The Red House’ and returns to England.

Combines two cottages, calling them ‘Fenlake Manor’, on the outskirts of Bedford and practices from 4 Windsor Place, St. Cuthbert Street, Bedford, until 1903 and then from home. New location is near to the ‘Pyghtle’ works of John P. White, for whom Baillie Scott produces designs for a catalogue of 120 pieces of furniture.

These are sold from White’s showroom at 134 New Bond Street and through Liberty, to whom it is likely Baillie Scott introduced Archibald Knox.

1904

Commences involvement with the Garden City Movement, subsequently completing structures in Letchworth and Hampstead Garden Suburb.

1906 Publishes his first volume of work, entitled “Houses and Gardnes”, illustrating his theories on

the ‘Artistic House’, and became quintessential as

a reference point to his inner workings and design

theories.

1911

Disaster strikes, in March, when ‘Fenlake Manor’ is destroyed by fire. Most of the drawings and records from this time are lost. Practice recommences from Beresford’s home, in St. John’s Street, Bedford, where it remains until 1914. After temporary moves, the Baillie Scott’s move to ‘The Lodge’ at Elstow, where they remain until the Autumn of 1912. There follows an unstable period of moves to London, Haslemere in Surrey and elsewhere.

1912

Le Corbusier describes Baillie Scott as one of “les plus grands artists”.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery 1914

The practice finishes for the duration of the First World War and the Baillie Scott’s return to Bedford.

1916

Moves to and restores ‘The White House’, Great Chart, Kent, a fifteenth century Kentish farmhouse.

1918

Returns to London, following a short spell in Bath.

1919

Baillie Scott and Beresford restore their practice, this time as partners, at 8 Grays Inn, Holborn.

Baillie Scott’s growing fascination with historic structures sees him restore, first, a seventeenth century house at 8 Quarry Street, Guildford, Surrey and then, between 1920 and 1921, ‘Oakhams’, a modest, fifteenth century farmhouse off Marsh Green Road, Edenbridge, Kent.

1919-1939

The practice flourishes, constructing at least 130 buildings. The practice is only considered to be fully occupied if 25 to 30 individual house designs are going up simultaneously.

1927

On 20 June, elected a Fellow of the RIBA by Council. Serves on the Arts Committee from 1928 to 1930.

1930

Practice relocates to Bedford Row.

1933

Publishes new volume of “Houses and Gardnes” with Beresford.

1935

Role in practice diminishes. Prefers to paint.

1939

Outbreak of War and death of wife sees Baillie Scott finally retire.

66

1941

Wartime bombs destroy the Bedford Row office, destroying those drawings that had survived the fire in Bedford, along with everything executed since.

1942

Sells ‘Oakhams’ and, under the care of a nurse, spends the next couple of years in various cottages and nursing homes around Devon and Cornwall. He continues to paint.

1944

Relocates to ‘Ripley House’ in Brighton.

1945

Dies at the Elm Grove Hospital, Brighton, on 10 February. Buried at Edenbridge, Kent. His epitaph read, ‘Nature he loved, and next to nature, art.’

Appendix List of Works (Selective) This is a truncated list of Baillie Scott’s work, referenced to in the main body of text. For a full list of his work, please refer to Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972, Found in the Appendix List of Works, P.529-569.

Ca. 1889

Perwick Villa, Port St. Mary, Isle of Man: One of a pair of semi-detached homes, built and existing. Bibliography: Isle of Man Port St. Mary Draft Conservation Area Character Appraisal, 2009; Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter Kelly, 2017.

Ca. 1889 Windy Rig, Port St. Mary, Isle of Man: The

second of a pair of semi-detached homes,

built and existing. Bibliography: Isle of Man Port

St. Mary Draft Conservation Area Character Appraisal, 2009; Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter Kelly, 2017.

1890-1891 Proposed House, Douglas, Isle of Man,

possibly for builder W. Macadam, unexecuted.

Bibliography: The Building News, December 4th,

1891; Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the

Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. This may have been a preliminary

design for Oakleigh.

1891-1892 North Lodge, Braddan, Isle of Man, built and

existing. Bibliography: Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter Kelly, 2017.

1892 Braddan Cemetery Office, Braddan, Isle of Man,

built and existing. Built in the same fashion as the

Braddan Primary School nearby. Bibliography: Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter

Kelly, 2017.

Ca. 1892

Braddan Cemetery Chapel Stained Glass, ` Braddan, Isle of Man, Designed and existing.

The original Chapel pre-dates the office but the glass was Designed and installed at a similar time.

Bibliography: Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter Kelly, 2017.

1892-1893

Oakleigh, Glencrutchery Road, Douglas, Isle of Man, built and existing albeit with various extensions, the main features remain intact.

Bibliography: The Building News, April 21st, 1893; Referred numerous times in Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972; Davey, P., Arts and Crafts architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise, 1980

1892-1893 House for Mr. MacAndrew (The Mansion), King

Edward Road, Onchan, Isle of Man. Built, altered

greatly and since been demolished. Now sits

on renovated land. Bibliography: The Building News, April 21st, 1893; Kornwolf, J.D., M. H.

Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement:

Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. MacAndrew

was originally from Prestwich, Lancashire, but the

details of the commission are not clear. The

builder was R.E.Cain.

1892-1893 Red House, Victoria Road, Douglas, Isle of

Man, M. H. Baillie Scott, Design and built this

house for himself, built and existing. Since

been largely extended on the northern aspect.

Bibliography: The Building News, April 21st,

1893; Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and

The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972; Davey, P., Arts and

Crafts architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise, 1980; Cumming, E., Kaplan, W.,

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

and Mrs J. A. Ranscombe, IoM Planning Committee, ca. 1996.

1893-1894

Ivydene, Little Switzerland, Douglas, Isle of Man for Richard Maltby Kerruish or R. M. Broadbent, there was an error in the directory, built and existing, but slightly renovated. Bibliography: The Building News, March 9th 1894; Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. The playroom wing has since been extended, becoming flush with the other side of the gabled porch. The south gable has also been enlarged and now comes down to the level of the first floor and increases the sizes of the room in that portion of the house as well as the veranda. This was probably made shortly after completion and supervised by Scott.

1894 ‘The Ideal Suburban Home’ publication was first seen in The Studio, Vol. IV, 1894. It set a

precedent of quality artisan housing, as a result

Baillie Scott received many commissions.

1895-1896 Semi-detached houses (Holly bank and Myrtle

bank), Little Switzerland, Douglas, Isle of Man,

built and existing. Bibliography: Kornwolf,

J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and

Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972; M. H. Baillie Scott, Houses

and Gardens, 1906; Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter Kelly, 2017.

1896-1897

68

Semi-detached houses (Leafield and Braefield), Kind Edwards Road, Onchan, Isle of Man, possibly for Macadam and Moore, built and existing. Bibliography: Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts and Crafts

Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972; M. H. Baillie Scott, Houses and Gardnes, 1906.

These were built on the estate near the old Majestic Hotel (Previously Mr. MacAndrew’s Mansion) since then the area around it has seen considerate redevelopment.

1897 seen

‘A Small Country House’ publication was first in The Studio, Vol. XII, 1897

1897-1898 Five Gables, built but not located. Bibliography: The Studio, December 1897; M. H. Baillie Scott,

Houses and Gardnes, 1906. The house was

probably commissioned because of

article in The Studio; photographs in Houses and Gardnes also

illustrate it.

1897- 1898 Dining and drawing room, Grand Ducal Palace,

Darmstadt, Hesse, for Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig

of Hesse, built but ultimately destroyed in 1911

due to a fire, only one chair survives today.

Bibliography: The Building News, July 23rd 1897,

December 1899; The Studio, July 1898, March

1899, July 1945; Muthesius, H., The English House, 2nd Edn, 1979.

1897-1898

Terrace houses, Falconcliffe, Douglas, Isle of Man, possibly for Macadam and Moore, built and existing. Bibliography Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter Kelly, 2017. renovations are currently being carried out by Hardcastle and Thomas Associates on the corner property. [APPENDIX]

1898-1900

Blackwell, Bowness-on- Windermere, South Lakeland, Cumbria for Sir Edward Holt, then Mayor of Manchester, built and existing.

Bibliography: Hyde, M. & Whittaker, E., Arts

Appendix and Crafts houses in the Lake District, 2016;

Kornwolf, J.D., M. H. Baillie Scott and the Arts

and Crafts Movement: Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972; M. H. Baillie Scott, Houses and Gardens, 1906; Muthesius, H., The English House, 1901; Davey, P., Arts and Crafts

architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise,

1980; Cumming, E., Kaplan, W., The Arts

and Crafts Movement, 1991. Blackwell House

is one of the finest preserved pieces of English

Arts and Crafts architecture in the world. Serving

as a school and offices for National Heritage

following the war, it was bought and renovated in

1999, before being reopened as a public house,

gallery and educational facility.

1900-1902 Police Station, Castletown, Isle of Man, built and

existing. Bibliography: Kornwolf, J.D., M. H.

Baillie Scott, The Arts and Crafts Movement:

Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972; Mentioned during audio transcripts with Peter

Kelly, 2017. Modelled on Castle Rushen across the

road, a comparison not originally identified

by Gregory Slater during his research for his

dissertation.

1909-1911 WaldbĂźhl, Uzwil, Switzerland, for Dr. Rolf

BĂźhler, built and existing. Bibliography: Davey,

P., Arts and Crafts architecture: The Search for Earthly Paradise, 1980; Kornwolf, J.D., M. H.

Baillie Scott and The Arts and Crafts Movement:

Pioneers of Modern Design, 1972. Baillie Scott

also designed a quantity of furniture for the house

and was on exhibition in Zurich in 1952 and the

Victoria and Albert Museum in London of the

year.

69

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery

Audio Transcripts Peter Kelly Delivered a short PowerPoint on a Brief history of Baillie Scott. Presentation carried out in Onchan Village Hall, 6th February 2017.

Peter Kelly: Here is Baillie Scott before he attended agricultural college and grew his moustache, certainly making him appear much older. His Father, who later visited Australia, as well as Canada, but it was Australia that he set up the Cattle ranch, not a sheep ranch, a common historical error. He worked the ranch with his brother, who later ran proceedings entirely. This is where Baillie Scott was destined to go. That is the College in Cirencester [Agricultural College] where I actually was fortunate enough to stay and as you can see here [Image of Graduation Plaque] the Initials of Baillie Scott. There was only five that graduated in this particular cohort. He actually excelled at drawing in his final exams.

He was then articled to Major Davies in Bath, though spent most of his time surveying Roman Baths, and eventually went onto designing churches. The Grand Hotel here was actually completed after Baillie Scott left his company, despite many people thinking this was related work, there is no connection. This is what Douglas looked like when he arrived, in 1889. Much of the Architecture had been built in the late 1870’s, this clock [Fig.17] was the commemorate Queen Victoria Golden Jubilee, so this had just been built at the time of the photograph being taken. He worked for Saunderson, who was a civil engineer, and this is the building he worked at, 7 Athol Street. The office was a room, and the other rooms were let off to other people.

His next job was for the Port St. Mary Building Estate, and this is where people, Kornwolf Included, fell down, trying to find the ‘house for the Doctor’ [Typified as Soctt’s first commission] and no one ever thought to look at Port St. Mary. It was to be a huge estate when in fact; only three houses were ever built on it.

That is one of them [Fig.18] it is a pair of houses, built for two farmers, brother in fact, who needed a house of their land. It

70

has nothing to do with the Doctor. These had a rather nice aesthetic, keeping with a traditional style of Scott but when I show you the back, [ See photo appendix] there are varying rooflines, and lean to’s etc.. You can see why it was a horrible affair; it did not cohere with the rest. This was mainly due to the rest of the estate not being finished and being quite arbitrary in their nature. Okay this is the first plan he submitted for publication, which is for Mr Bates. A bungalow that was never built. [Fig.19] Interesting to see the curved section, because [Armitage] Rigby used that later. This was the first house he lived in on Alexander Terrace and it is everything he hated in a modern house. Front door, vestibule, staircase, toilet etc, all very cramped and not at all thought out internally.

This are the drawings for the Cemetery office [could not be sourced] and images for this too. This is the cemetery chapel and these are the windows you have managed to photograph through the chapel key hole. [See photo appendix] This is the school just up the road and this is where the inspiration came from. The different styles of brick and the elliptical arches, which weren’t in the cemetery office but of course were located at North Lodge .Here is North Lodge, which you have seen this morning, the waterhead dating 1892, the windows with the special mullion moulding and the half window at the back in conjunction with the fireplace. [Fig.20]

Next is Oakleigh, which you saw this morning, without the downstairs toilet [Fig.22]. Here it is from another angle without the additions. We move on to the inside, with the original fireplace, which had never been used.

Appendix

Then we move on to the Mansion, later became the Majestic Hotel; it was built in Red Brick, very usual for the time. Here is a photograph of it being built around 1893. Another image of it in the 30’s when it had become a hotel, minus the more modern extensions. Ivy had grown on it, and someone I had shown this too compared it to Sandringham. It’s nothing like Sandringham but it gives off that impression, a gentleman’s residence. That is an image of it after to the first extension and of course they rendered over everything! The next image I found on EBay, and I knew where it was located as I have been inside before. Also faintly, you can make out the ‘smoking room’ sign on the upper right on the image. As you can see, interior wise, it was very traditional, there were no Arts and Crafts in this room, mostly wood panelling on the walls. The image next shows the aftermath of a fire that broke out shortly before it was knocked down.

Ivydene then. This porch as you saw this morning, with the stain glass on either side. This is the walkway on the roofline, allowing the house cleaner to hang on and clean the windows. Inside is the copper canopy with tiles and red brick. Upstairs another inglenook has been blocked in, unfortunately.

There is the Red House, shortly after completion with family in the picture. This was followed by numerous extensions to the right hand side of the property. You can still see the brickwork on the other side of the chimney. Originally, it had an outside loo, tacked onto the side of the building and the original gate had been removed. I hope that it was for repair. Baillie Scott was very keen to add dates to his work. The original doorway to Red House has actually been brought forward, altering Scott’s work of pushing it back. The reverse image is the garden side and this is the bit that has since been removed and extended upon. Inside was interesting, as the furniture was not of Baillie Scott. A simple gate leg table and chairs. The Dining room had a small window in the frame of the inglenook fireplace and let light through. This is he stood in the hall, where the bare brickwork has been since plastered, although the oak panelling still exits that he used in Ivydene. The front door led directly into the heart of the building, so this is the door that has been moved outwards to allow an elongated hallway. The firedogs

and fire screens have been since moved and placed in Darmstadt.

Myrtle Bank and Holly Bank without the lamppost outside [Older Image]. Inside the owners have stripped down the staircase to the bare wood, which is unlike how Scott would have originally designed it. He used softwoods so to be painted white. Here, as in the Parish Church, the hearts are evident but are upside down. Was it the joiner who installed them the wrong way up? The way in which it tapers, like other Baillie Scott features, may have proved difficult to fit the other way round. The bannisters taper towards the top too.

The Transition is noticed in the amalgamation of a variety of Scott’s work at the end of the 19th century in the Isle of Man. The half-timbered vernaculars of Red House, Ivydene and Oakleigh of around 1892-93 had drastically altered by the mid to late 1890’s.

Reduced the amount of timbering, and increased the usage of roughcast render on their exterior. Hollybank and Myrtlebank [1895/97] only had a smaller section of timber framed tops to the roof and even less were evident on Braeside and Leaside with only a tiny portion of the gable with the feature. This is obviously lost altogether on Falconcliffe Terrace [Fig.38] and the Village Hall as its contemporary, built a year later in 1898.

These are the two porches [Speaking about Braeside and Leaside], so you get flat roof dormer in between the two porches.

The rear is slightly unfortunate, as they have put in some doors in around a bay window. Inside, the tapering nules are there again with the waving wooden boarding, and then here we have Rowan trees, which are found heavily in Blackwell, though it would not be finished for another 2 years so it is something that he obviously liked to use.

These benched seats are the thickness of the walls and because it is just a corridor when you walk in, this is his equivalent of the hall room and made provisions for people to sit in the hall and read or be sociable. Next is the bedroom fireplace, painted over but notice the shape of the mantle again [Replicated the projecting windowsills at Hollybank and Mrtylebank]. After Scott had gone, the company who built the estate tried to promote them by imagining all the other houses designed in the Arts and Crafts Style like the existing buildings.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery all the other houses designed in the Arts and Crafts Style like the existing buildings.

Here is where you have been this morning [Image] at Thornbank. Picture taken a while ago, since then the roof has been stripped and the felt has been reapplied. Inside, was the Inglenook in the small hall, but serviced by double doors leading to the living room. It was said in his book [Houses and Gardnes] that this was for entertaining. The hearth mantle shape again shares the same aesthetic as previous ones. In the upstairs front and back bedroom, both have recessed seating in their windows.

The Village Hall in 1981 here [Image] before they built the side entrance in favour of its original one. It also shows the frontage without the railings, which were added later as well. An image here of how Baillie Scott had originally foreseen the Hall, with murals painted on the ceiling and benched seating. Some of this had definitely been built however as I saw a piece when I was 11, though it meant nothing to me at the time. The stage has enlarged since its construction, possibly allowing more space for performance areas.

Other features, the stain glass, the doorways leading up to the stage and the curtains, which was actually Voysey in design, all remain.

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End of PowerPoint Presentation

Appendix Interviewer: Joel Barnes Interviewee: Peter Kelly, Architect, Architectural Historian and Chairman of the Victorian Society in the Isle of Man. Interview conducted in Onchan Village Hall, 6th February 2017.

Joel: What convinced Baillie Scott to reside and remain on the Isle of Man for the length of time that he did?

Peter: Well it’s not really what convinced him to stay here, I mean, he came here allegedly on his honeymoon, you know, out of the whole world he came to the Isle of Man, but maybe it was just a popular place at the time. When he arrived here, it was a developing place, the number of tourists coming here each year was getting bigger and therefore those who ran hotels were able to have private houses as well, there were estates appearing around the upper part of Douglas, and then a little bit later and larger estate planned for Ramsey and one for Port St. Mary [The Ramsey one was successful and previously discussed the Port St. Mary one was less so]. So he saw the potential, where you’ve got an estate where you need houses and those houses need plans, so for him it was a great opening.

So I guess that is why he stayed [...] from here he could design for Darmstadt, for Windermere, for Scotland and there was no drawbacks in living here and doing work abroad. Why he left which is sort of the reverse of your question is the fact that there was a bank crash here at Dumbbells in 1900 and everything stopped.

Buildings stopped because of course if you banked with Dumbbells you had no money, if the person who owed you money banked at Dumbbells, you were not going to get paid so subsequently construction came to a grinding halt. Baillie Scott preemptively left because he saw the writing on the wall. He had other ventures in furniture design, so he used this as a sideline to develop, so off he went to Bedford and only eventually began drawing and designing again. The interesting thing about Baillie Scott is that he never ever did many houses before long after he had moved down to the South of England, well into the 1930’s when he began to churn out houses with Beresford. So it’s not as much why he stayed here, he could have been anywhere. He simply stayed because there was work and great potential, but ultimately it was the bank crash that moved

him on. Despite all his comments about how he left due ‘children’s education’ or ‘people were copying my work’ is, frankly, nonsense.

Wherever he went people would have copied his work anyway. There just wasn’t a future for him.

Joel: Thanks, okay, on the topic of Blackwell, you mentioned Diane Haigh was the principal architect leading the restoration in ‘99.

Having developed a professional relationship with her over the years, was there a process in the way in which she restored the building?

And in what way did she source so much of the original furnishings and fixtures to leave an authentic experience for visitors?

Peter: Okay, well okay, she did what the museum had been doing to Thornbank here, by putting scaffolding over the top and covering the whole thing. She took the roof off and re-slated it with as much original material as they could. They no doubt put a lining of felt in and then worked there way down through making the house watertight. Then it was a case of deciding on the rooms which would be for the purpose of seeing what the rooms were like. So you had the White Drawing Room, you had the Hall, you had the room with the Peacock frieze. Then out the back where the kitchen, sculleries, pantry and what not were all cleared to make way for the shop, the dining area and the kitchen. The same repeats itself upstairs with some of the bedrooms and fireplaces were all uncovered [fortunately intact] and some of them are used for different exhibitions with lighting suspended from wires just below the wooden paneled roof line. Then above this, the second floor which was of interest to me was the servants bedrooms had been [unfortunately] converted to offices or storage for the staff now. But it was a systematic case of making the building functional, then deciding what should be kept and what could be sacrificed and ultimately what could be highlighted.

Joel: Building on the point you made about highlighting certain features, of the furniture in the house now, most is of Baillie Scott.

Is this in keeping with the houses original aesthetic? You mentioned more recent owners of Arts and Crafts houses who would pick various things related to The Arts and Crafts Movement and add them to their house without thought of its original furnishings.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Has Blackwell been decorated tastefully?

Peter: Well the only thing he used from a catalogue were the fire grates because to have those cast you have to make patterns. Whilst he designed the fire surrounds, the area in which you operated the fire was a manufactured product. This was the case in Voysey’s work at Cragside, just down the road from Blackwell. But no everything else he design, all the furniture.

Baillie Scott’s work is discernible from the others, and as you’ve seen on your short visit to the Island, he evolved from one extreme of doing half timbered housing and Jacobean manor houses to Arts and Crafts, in a very short period of time. You can see the change from building to building how he progressed from one thing to another.

Joel: So it’s this acute evolution that is of importance?

Joel: And was all of this furniture intended to go into Blackwell? Not something that was designated for somewhere else but eventually relocated and added to Blackwell?

Peter: It’s the importance of evolution whilst he was here [Isle of Man]. His houses in Bedford were quite different to that found here.

So ultimately these houses are more important!

Peter: Oh no, everything was specifically chosen, I mean Baillie Scott worked on the basis of ‘If I’m designing the house, I’m designing it from top to bottom’.

End of Interview.

Joel: Okay, great, the last question really to summarise what we have said. Why should Baillie Scotts work be restored, protected and remembered? Especially because the sheer amount of designers, architects and artists who drew inspiration from The Arts and Crafts Movement. Why is the importance of Scott’s work still relevant today?

Peter: Well okay, he was a pioneer. He was there- I mean there were others- Mackintosh, Voyseys, and Lutyens during the same period, but he had his own style. He particularly had layout, in which he was maybe ahead of the others? Much like the work of Frank Lloyd Wright [years later], where is he worked from the inside out. He worked his way out of a building and then decided how it would look on the outside relevant on the combination of rooms, hence his folding partitions between hallways and principal rooms. So why should it be preserved, why should it be made special? Well it should be made special because there is a limited amount of it. As like anything that is a rarity it has a certain level of value.

But in terms of the work itself, it is different to the others, you can’t say Mackintosh and Baillie Scott work is the same, they are quite different. Therefore, in the same way you can apply the same argument to the other architects because their style was unique and as of now, more than a century old, has become a rarity. However

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Appendix

Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery Moore, S., Personal Communication via Email, Recorded February 7th 2017.

Joel: Hi Steve, Just like to thank you for the conversation we had today, it was a lot more thought provoking than I thought it was going to be, but has made me think a little bit more about my thesis’ content which is massively helpful. I appreciate your time too. If I have any queries i’ll be sure to contact you!

Thanks again, Joel Steve Moore: Morning Joel, You are very welcome. It was great to talk to you too.

I am more than happy to help if you want to talk something over. I do think the social angle is an interesting/important driver behind Blackwell.

I also think the discussion we had about visiting Blackwell today without furniture was very interesting as people ‘read’ the building differently with and without furniture. For the layperson, it is much easier to relate the house to their own environment with furniture in it. It offers scale. It also changes the ambiance in there. Acoustics are affected by furniture and fittings. Something to think about maybe as part of the conclusion i.e. how the building is perceived by the visitor and therefore something that should perhaps be changed going forward.

Oh, and it was Castle Drogo that we visited. Edwin Lutyens.

Regards, Steve

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Appendix Moore, S., Personal Communication via Email, Recorded February 13th 2017.

Joel:

Steve Moore:

Evening Steven,

Morning Joel,

Hope you’re well, I was wondering if I may be able to ask you a question via E-mail. I am writing a chapter currently that describes Baillie Scott’s time on the Isle of Man and I trying to paint a picture of the vernaculars that existed and how this was so quickly altered not longer after he arrived. Is this something you would have any clue about?

The vernacular here is very simple. The less ‘Polite’ buildings are very simple, often built of the materials immediately to hand and rarely more than two storeys high with perhaps a third attic storey.

The simpler dwellings were little more than hovels, one or two cell houses with a chiollagh (the main fireplace) to provide heat and cooking. They sometimes had a cockloft, which is a sleeping platform

Regards, Joel

The Island is split into geological regions and it shows in the vernacular.

Peel in the West is known for the red sandstone there. Castletown its limestone and Pooill Vaaish (a very black stone rumoured to have been used on the steps of St Pauls). The east uses slate and the north; literally beach stone there is some fantastic upland feldspar in the middle of the Island that is found in lintels and quoins on the corner of buildings. The north around Bride and Cranstal also has some Cob (a type of rammed earth) dwellings. Slate (used for door, window and fireplace lintels) was not widespread across the Island.

You tended to find timber used in those other areas (from about Kirk Michael on the West, up). Timber in itself was in very short supply. The Island was deforested earlier than the remainder of the UK, so you find driftwood and parts of boats used for lintels on the coastal regions. Roofing material-wise, various types of thatching including wheat straw and various cereal crops (oats), Bracken used in some of the upland areas and Marram grass used on the northern plains and there was that Manx slate (usually a heavier gauge than Welsh and grey in colour) which was used.

Limekilns are found all over the Island and provide mortar, external render and internal plaster and the characteristic lime wash that you see almost everywhere, bar the likes of the warehouses on the quayside.

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Baillie Scott: From Manx Tradition to Cumbrian Gallery the time that we are talking about Baillie Scott coming to the Island.

The Industrial Revolution is in full swing. Slate as a roofing material is being shipped to the Island and used readily.

The resultant vernacular is therefore stone built, whitewashed and either topped with a slate roof, or if more rural and therefore poor, thatched. (See DSCF0017 and 23 attached, they are of Rose Cottage in Surby in the south. There is thatch under the black plastic.

DSCF0010 shows the timber trusses in the roof with the scraa, literally turf used as insulation and the base layer of the roof build up).

To drop clay pan tiles, red bricks, half timbering into this would have been completely alien. In terms of the context, in my view Baillie Scott could be considered to have ignored it, at least in his earlier works. You see a more ‘relevant’ contextual link in his Falcon Cliff Terrace scheme. I have never investigated it, but I see links with Rennie Mackintosh’s work in Glasgow. I am sure they were aware of one another. As we said when you were here, they both wrote for different publications and I am sure attended lectures at the Royal Academy.

As a final and perhaps obvious point, being an Island, the influences come in via the sea and its ports. Castletown was the former capitol and then it shifted to Douglas around 1874, just before Baillie Scott came to the Island. Therefore, Douglas was really starting to take off.

I could keep writing . . .

Let me know if you want more.

Regards, Steve

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