William Beckford 1760-1844: An Eye for the Magnificent

About this book

The British collector William Beckford helped to define many of the most significant parameters of nineteenth-century collecting as he was unbound by conventional intellectual or aesthetic prejudice. He was among the first of the great connoisseurs to collect Asian and Islamic art while breaking with the taste of his contemporaries. He assembled an eclectic and luxurious collection that included ancient medieval and Renaissance art as well as seventeenth- eighteenth- and early-nineteenth- century objects. His active participation in the design of various objects reveals a discriminating aesthetic sensibility that set him apart from his contemporaries. His influence also extended beyond his day; generations of renowned private collectors in Great Britain on the Continent and in the United States have reflected his interest in the art of many cultures and periods. This magnificent book describes Beckfords flamboyant personality and unconventional life. Authorities tell us that at an early age Beckford was known as "Englands wealthiest son " due to a prodigal income generated from Jamaican sugar plantations. As a youth he traveled widely and made his mark as a novelist composer of music and impresario of design. His most ambitious project was his fantastic residence Fonthill Abbey; the construction and furnishing of this Gothic Revival edifice consumed nearly twenty-five years of Beckfords life and vast amounts of his fortune branding him with a reputation as a recluse and eccentric. In addition to providing details about Beckfords life the book discusses 175 of the finest works of art that once were part of Beckfords legendary collections and examines his travels and great building projects.