Reason In Architecture. Lectures Delivered at the Royal Academy of Arts in the Year 1906.
By T. G. Jackson
Published by John Murray: London 1906 1st Edition
PROVENANCE:
Carries an editorial review request to Mr Blomfield with extensive handwritten pencil notes as shown.The inserted sheet is an authentic editorial review request from the Saturday Review dated 1906, addressed to "Mr. Blomfield". This would have been sent to a reviewer, requesting a 1,000-word review of Reason in Architecture. The handwritten notes on the sheet and the additional inserted page appear to be working notes for a review, summarising or responding to key themes in Jackson's lectures. This is likely to be the work of
Sir Reginald Theodore Blomfield
RA (20 December 1856 - 27 December 1942), a prolific British architect, garden designer and author of the Victorian and Edwardian period.
"
T. G. Jackson's Reason in Architecture (1906) brings together the influential lectures he delivered at the Royal Academy of Arts, offering a lucid and deeply reflective examination of the intellectual principles that underpin architectural design. Jackson—already renowned for works such as Modern Gothic Architecture and his extensive studies of Oxford buildings—uses these lectures to argue for a disciplined architectural practice rooted in structure, proportion, and historical understanding. His approach balances artistic sensitivity with technical clarity, making a strong case for architecture as both a rational science and a cultivated art.
Across these lectures Jackson engages with classical, medieval, and Renaissance precedents, illustrating how architectural solutions evolve in response to real human needs and material conditions. He challenges the growing tendency toward superficial stylistic eclecticism, urging architects to consider why forms arise, how they work, and what values they convey. In doing so, he outlines a powerful critique of fashions that prioritise appearance over integrity, emphasising craft, fitness for purpose, and consistency between form and function.
As a first edition published by John Murray—one of the period's most significant houses for scholarly and artistic works—the volume occupies a notable position in early twentieth-century architectural thought. Its insights remain relevant to contemporary debates about authenticity, ornament, structural honesty, and the architect's intellectual duty. Reason in Architecture will appeal to collectors of architectural literature, students of design theory, and admirers of the Royal Academy's influential architectural lectures."
Light wear and fading to spine and general wear to covers. Includes Editorial Review request document with handwritten notes + some pencil notes in book. Note that this document is loose, not attached to back of book. Almost certainly this was Blomfield's copy that he reviewed. A nice copy with interesting provenance in very good condition overall. Please study photos to further understand condition.
