Neoclassicism in the Extended Field

Neoclassicism, the movement that looked to the aesthetic, philosophical and political tradition of Greece and Rome, is one of the central threads of the long nineteenth century, often associated with state-building projects and the rise of secular modernity. Works by Robert Adam, Jacques-Germain Soufflot, Karl Friedrich Schinkel and Abbé Laugier had a crucial influence on the evolution and theorization of the movement internationally. This was facilitated through the circulation of ideas and the growth of European colonial enterprises as Neoclassical buildings sprung up far beyond the confines of Europe, with examples in the colonial Americas, the Middle East, South Asia, and across the continent of Africa.

This panel asks what happens when Neoclassicism moves outside of its traditionally understood geographies, namely Western Europe. It examines the introduction, promotion and application of Neoclassicism in these non-western geographies in order to construct a global understanding of the movement. This panel also considers how Greco-Roman traditions intersect and interact with local archaeological legacies, as well as the relationship established between Neoclassicism and imperialism across the globe. We welcome papers that expand, complicate and contradict traditional narratives of Neoclassical architecture, from the discovery of Pompeii and Herculaneum until the first decade of the twentieth century. These might explore topics related to the circulation of Neoclassical design through colonial intervention, photography, pattern books, architectural treatises, or the prominence of the École des Beaux-arts. Examples could include but are not limited to governmental buildings, libraries, financial institutions, religious monuments, private residences, unrealized projects, and theoretical writings.