Join Sir Charles Saumarez Smith and Roz Barr for an exclusive curator-led tour of our new exhibition, Vanbrugh: The Drama of Architecture.

Join us to explore one of the UK’s greatest architects – Sir John Vanbrugh (1664 – 1776) and learn more about the work of the architect hailed as ‘The Rockstar of the English Baroque’ and ‘The original starchitect’, who designed some of the UK’s most admired and loved country houses, including Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard. Sir John Soane (1753-1837) cited Vanbrugh as one of his great influences, remarking that he had “all the fire and power of Michelangelo and Bernini”.

This exclusive tour offers the opportunity to delve deeper into the drawings in this unique exhibition and explore key themes in dialogue with the exhibition’s curators. Curated by Sir Charles Saumarez Smith CBE and architect Roz Barr, the show will feature never-before-exhibited drawings from the V&A and Sir John Soane’s Museum, including many in Vanbrugh’s own hand, and is an opportunity to see a selection of Vanbrugh’s drawings for major projects like Castle Howard, but also smaller, more experimental plans for schemes such as the housing estate he envisaged at Greenwich.

Tours will run on:

  • Friday 24 April at 10 am
  • Friday 12 June at 2 pm

About the event

  • Tours last approximately 45 minutes and are led by the exhibition's curators. There are 15 places per tour. 
  • Please note that the tour on Friday 24 April begins at 10 am, and on Friday 12 June at 2 pm
  • Please convene outside the No.12 door of the Museum 10 minutes before your tour start time, where a member of our team will greet you and escort the group up to our Exhibition Galleries. You will be asked to put any small bags into our biodegradable clear bags to enter the Museum; alternatively, for bags that don't fit into our biodegradable bags, you will be asked to leave them in our cloakroom.

Ticket Information

  • £15, or £5 for students.
  • After purchase, you will receive a confirmation email which acts as your ticket. Please note that we do not issue separate tickets. When you arrive on the day, your name will be ready on our list. 
  • Tickets are refundable up to 7 days before the event, after which point they are non-refundable or exchangeable. 

About your tour guides

Sir Charles Saumarez Smith CBE was Secretary and Chief Executive of the Royal Academy from 2007 to 2018.  Since then, he has written two books, The Art Museum in Modern Times and John Vanbrugh: The Drama of Architecture.  He is a trustee of the Garden Museum and Castle Howard Foundation and writes a monthly column on architecture for The Critic.

Roz Barr is an architect and academic who founded her own practice nearly 15 years ago in London.  Her work has been recognised both nationally in the UK and internationally for her sensitive and imaginative approach to architecture and the re-imagining of historic settings, often collaborating with artists and makers. She has taught at the Architectural Association and Kingston University and was Visiting Professor at Cornel University.  She was RIBA Vice President of Education for three years and currently sits on the RIBA International and National Awards jury.

 

Banner image: Image: Soane office, Royal Academy Lecture Drawing of the work of Sir John Vanbrugh, ‘Goose-Pie House', London: Whitehall, perspective