=The Cupola or Cube Room.=
In this sumptuous and gorgeous chamber, with its marble-pillared
doorways, its painted and gilded walls, its niches, brackets, slabs, and
pediments of white marble, its gilt antique statues, its gaudy domed
ceiling of blue and gold, we have the very acme and essence of the style
and art of William Kent, triumphant and rampant. After our remarks on
his work in the foregoing room, we shall not be expected to lose
ourselves in admiration over this masterpiece of his pseudo-classic
design and decoration. Yet little as we may agree with his theories of
art, little as we may admire the way he carried them into practice, it
is not to be denied that, viewed as a whole, there is considerable
grandeur and stateliness, and a certain degree of fine proportion, about
this highly-emblazoned saloon.
Though called the "Cube" Room, its dimensions are not exactly of that
mathematical figure, the walls being only 26 feet 2 inches high, to the
top of the cornice, and 34 feet 7 inches to the centre of the ceiling,
though each side is 37 feet long.
The Painted Ceiling of the Cube Room.
The ceiling seems to have been the first portion of the work undertaken
by Kent, and to have been finished by him by the spring of the year
1722. That he was employed to do this work occasioned much very
justifiable heart-burning. Sir James Thornhill was at that time
serjeant-painter to the King, and in virtue of his office was entitled
to receive the commission for painting this ceiling. Indeed, it appears
from a "Memorial of Sir Thomas Hewett, Knt., Surveyor-General of His
Majesties Works," addressed to the Lords of the Treasury, dated 14th
February, 1722-3, and "relating to the painting of the large Square Room
at Kensington," that in the foregoing autumn the King had commanded
Hewett's attendance at Kensington "about finishing the Three Large Rooms
in the New Building," and that Hewett then showed the King "several
sketches of mosaic work, etc., for painting the ceiling of the Great
Square Room." The Memorial proceeds to state:
"His Majesty chose one of them; and after I ordered a model to be
made, and Sir James Thornhill painted it, which His Majesty saw and
approved of; and commanded me to tell the Vice-Chamberlain he
should treat with Sir James Thornhill for the Price, and that it
should be done out of Hand, which is all I know of the matter."
Nevertheless, for some reason or other--probably owing to some backstair
intrigue--Kent was employed to do the work instead. But before he had
half finished it the officers of works were directed by the Treasury "to
view and take care that the particulars of Mr. Kent's proposal for
painting the ceiling of the Great Chamber at Kensington be well
answer'd, and the work in the best manner performed with
l'Ultra-Marine." They accordingly commissioned several of the best
artists of the day "to view and carefully to consider the same and
report in writing."
[Illustration: THE CUPOLA OR CUBE ROOM, AS IT WAS WHEN THE QUEEN WAS
BAPTIZED IN IT.]
The artists, or rather critics as they became--and trust an artist to be
no too lenient a critic of a fellow artist's work--were John van Vaart,
Alex^{r} Nisbett, and Jacob Rambour. Their report is dated May 22nd,
1722, and in it they state as follows:
"We have been to Kensington and carefully view'd and considered the
said painting, which we did find better than half done: But having
examin'd the particulars thereof, we have observed, and 'tis our
opinion, that the Perspective is not just; that the principal of
the work, which consists in ornaments and architecture, is not done
as such a place requires. Mr. Nesbot adds that the Boys, Masks,
Mouldings, etc., far from being well, he has seen very few worse
for such a place: and Mr. Rambour affirms that the said work, far
from being done in the best manner, as mentioned in your letter, it
is not so much as tolerably well perform'd. As for the quality of
the Blew used in the work, Mr. Vandewart and Mr. Rambour declare
that they can't judge whether it is true ultramarine, because it
does not look fine enough, but Mr. Nesbot's opinion is that it is
nothing but Prussian Blew, in which perhaps there may be some
Ultra-marine mixt."
Nevertheless, the colours have endured unfaded until to-day; and the
gilding also, both on the ceiling and the walls, has required but little
renewing, only cleaning and an occasional application of modern leaf
gold, and retouching with the paint brush, where the old surface had
been injured.
Much of the woodwork, however, had to be repaired, especially the
capitals of the pilasters, some of which had to be renewed.
The shape of the ceiling is slightly domed, the four coved sides
terminating above in a flat centre, painted with a gigantic star of the
Order of the Garter. The coved sides themselves are painted with
octagonal panels, diminishing upwards to simulate a lofty pierced dome.
Kent himself seems to have been so well satisfied with the work, that he
made use of almost exactly the same design when painting the Queen's
Staircase at Hampton Court some twelve years after. Across, part of the
north cove of the ceiling is painted a deep shadow, to indicate that
cast by the wall and cornice above the windows.
The Painted Walls of the Cube Room.
Kent, after finishing the ceiling, proceeded to decorate the walls with
painting and gilding. There is a letter in the Record Office, from Lord
Grafton, to the Lords of the Treasury, dated 29th of May, 1725, ordering
payment of "£344 2_s._ 7_d._ to Mr. Kent, for painting the sides of the
Cube Room at Kensington with ornaments enriched with gold."
These walls, including the four pilasters on each, are of oak, painted
with a light olive-green colour as a ground, embellished with niches of
white marble, surmounted by brackets of the same, let into the woodwork.
In the =six niches= are well-designed statues of classical
deities--Ceres, Mercury, Venus, Minerva, Bacchus, Apollo, in cast lead,
somewhat under life-size. These were so dirty and tarnished as to
necessitate their being entirely new-gilt. Above them, standing on
brackets in flat rectangular niches, were formerly busts representing
Roman poets, now unfortunately no longer to be found.
The two =doorways= opposite each other are likewise of the same fine
polished marble, with pilasters and pillars of the Ionic order,
supporting heavy entablatures, on the apexes of which are antique busts.
The =chimney-place= is of the same design in miniature, of polished
"dove-coloured" white-veined marble, similar to that at Marlborough
House. On the apex was formerly a gilt bust of Cleopatra, now missing.
Within the fireplace itself are very fine panelled and moulded "covings"
or sides, of the same "dove-coloured" marble, discovered during the
progress of the restorations.
Above the chimney-piece is a large =bas-relief= in statuary marble
representing a Roman marriage, sculptured by the statuary Rysbach. It is
a fine work, but one feels rather as if standing in front of a
sepultural monument in some foreign _campo santo_ than before an English
fireside.
Rysbach, who was a native of Antwerp, came over to England in 1720, four
or five years before he executed this work. His talents were for some
time--as have been those of many an unsuspecting foreigner--exploited by
a commercializing British impresario, Gibbs. Two-thirds of the prices
paid for his work found its way into the pockets of the unscrupulous
intermediary, until Rysbach, at last shaking himself free from this
bondage, took commissions on his own account, and, becoming the rage, he
was able to exact great prices for his work. It is possible that he
designed the gilt statues in the niches, which seem too good for Kent's
narrow invention.
General appearance of the Cupola Room.
Such was the decoration of this famous Cupola or Cube Room when finished
by Kent, such it appeared in 1818, when Pyne's drawing, from which our
illustration is taken, was made, and such it appears to this day, save
for the large musical clock which then stood in its centre, for the
console tables against the walls, and the four large chandeliers that
hung from the ceiling. These last were most essential features in this
saloon, for its windows, abutting northwards on the private gardens,
admit but very insufficient light; and only when illuminated by a blaze
of candlelight can full justice have been done to the extravagant
glories of its walls and ceilings.
It was, in fact, intended essentially as a room for grand evening
entertainments, and Kent evidently bore this in mind when he constructed
it; for he contrived a very ingenious method, whereby the double doors
in the doorways between it and the two drawing-rooms, with which it
communicates, fold back, when opened, into the door jambs, in which they
lie flush, offering no projecting hindrance to the movement of guests
passing either way. This is a point never thought of by modern
architects, who might do worse, when designing great reception rooms,
than take a hint in this matter from the much contemned Kent, and so
obviate the usual "crush" at the too narrow doorways.
* * * * *
It seems to have been in this Cupola Room that took place, on the 24th
of June, 1819, the baptism of the infant Princess Victoria. Faulkner
records that "the Royal Gold Font was brought from the Tower and fitted
up in the Grand Saloon, with crimson velvet covering from the Chapel
Royal, St. James's. The ceremony was performed by the Archbishop of
Canterbury, assisted by the Bishop of London.... The Prince Regent and
nearly all the Royal Family were present at the ceremony, or at the
dinner in the evening."
Exactly underneath this room is the famous pillared "Council Chamber" in
which, as we have already stated, the Queen held her first council.
=King's Drawing Room.=
Built at the same time as the two preceding rooms by command of King
George I., William Kent here again reigns supreme in the design and
decoration. "It was on the walls of this drawing-room," we are told by
Pyne, writing in 1818, "that the then new art of paper-hangings, in
imitation of the old velvet flock, was displayed, with an effect that
soon led to the adoption of so cheap and elegant a manufacture, in
preference to the original rich material from which it was copied."
The paper that now covers the walls is a copy of an old pattern, and has
been supplied by Messrs. Bertram, the decorators.
We may again notice here the five lofty doorways, surmounted by flat
architraves, and the oak pilasters in the dado as characteristic of
Kent. There was originally one of his great massive marble
chimney-pieces in this room, long since replaced by the present plain
insignificant one.
The dimensions of this room are 39 feet 6 inches long (from east to
west), 28 feet wide, and 22 feet 8 inches high to the top of the
cornice.
Painted Ceiling of the King's Drawing Room.
This is another of Kent's artistic efforts. There is in the Record
Office a letter from Lord Grafton dated June 26th, 1725, conveying his
majesty's commands that "their Lordships of the Treasury would give
orders to Mr. William Kent to paint the ceilings, etc. in the new
apartments at Kensington"--including this one.
The cove of the ceiling, or portion nearest the cornice, is elaborately
decorated with scroll-work and architectural ornaments, richly gilt and
painted, and with medallions in the middle of each side supported by
female figures. In the centre is a large projecting heavy oval frame of
plaster, with the panel within it recessed about three feet. This is
painted with the story of Jupiter and Semele, the God appearing in a
thunder-cloud, and Semele, in a ridiculous attitude, on a couch. No
painting could be worse. The signature of the artist, "_William Kent
pinxit_, 1725," has been found a little to the left of the right foot of
Semele.
When the restoration of this room was taken in hand last winter, the
ceiling was so begrimed with the dirt, dust, smoke, and smuts of upwards
of a hundred and fifty years of London atmosphere, as to be nearly
black. The cleaning was carried out with the most scrupulous care, and
practically no re-painting or re-gilding has been necessary.
William Kent, the Royal and Fashionable Decorator.
The whole effect of this ceiling _if you do not look at it_ is rich and
striking, and with the fine paper and the pictures on the walls will
pass muster as a suitable decorative treatment of a grand state
reception room. George I. and George II. at any rate had no hesitation
in extending an unqualified approval to Kent's work. After having
finished this suite he grew into greater favour than ever. He was soon
after appointed "Master Carpenter, Architect, Keeper of the Pictures,
and Principal Painter to the Crown, the whole, including a pension of
£100 a year, which was given him for his works at Kensington,
producing--according to Walpole--£600 a year." From the Court his vogue
extended to a large circle of patrons and votaries. "He was not only
consulted for furniture, as frames of pictures, glasses, tables, chairs,
etc., but for plate, for a barge, for a cradle; and so impetuous was
fashion, that two great ladies prevailed on him to make designs for
their birthday gowns. The one he dressed in a petticoat decorated with
columns of the five orders; the other like a bronze, in a
copper-coloured satin, with ornaments of gold!"
[Illustration: KING'S DRAWING ROOM.]