J. D. Sedding

Infobox Architect


caption=
name=John Dando Sedding
nationality=English
birth_date=1838
birth_place=
death_date=1891
death_place=
practice_name=
significant_buildings=Holy Trinity Church, Sloane Street, London
significant_projects=
awards=|

John Dando Sedding (1838-1891) was a noted Victorian church architect, working on new buildings and repair work, with an interest in a ‘crafted Gothic’ style. He was an influential figure in the Arts and Crafts movement, many of whose leading designers studied in his offices.

Sedding was, like William Morris, Philip Webb and Norman Shaw, a pupil of George Edmund Street. He moved to London from Bristol in 1876 and set up offices on the upper floors of 447 Oxford Street, next door to the premises of William Morris & Co. In 1876 Sedding met John Ruskin, under whose influence he developed a freer Gothic style, introducing natural ornament into his designs. Sedding encouraged his students to study old buildings at first hand, focusing on the practicalities of craft techniques. He placed an emphasis on texture and ornament; the naturalistic treatment of flowers, leaves and animals, always drawn from life; and the close involvement of the architect in the simple processes of building and in the supervision of a team of craftsmen employed direct.

The German architect and critic Hermann Muthesius stated that "he formed the first bridge between the architects' camp and that of handicraft proper".

Buildings

Sedding’s buildings include the Holy Trinity Sloane Street, London, the Church of the Holy Redeemer, Clerkenwell, London (one of the first churches in London to be built in the classical style since the time of Sir Christopher Wren), and numerous rural churches, particularly in the West Country, such as those at Hoberton and Ermington in Devon, and St Elwyn's Hayle and All Saint's Falmouth in Cornwall.

External links

* [http://jdsedding.freehomepage.com/ John Dando Sedding]
* [http://www.victorianweb.org/art/architecture/trinity/index.html Holy Trinity Church, Chelsea]