Lecture: Philadelphia's Last Victorians: Shifting Tides in Architectural Taste, 1885-1910

At the start of the twentieth century, architects and their clients were attuned to new visual values, from small crafted objects to grand civic ensembles. The work of Frank Miles Day (1861–1918), a friend and colleague of Violet Oakley, includes examples across this range. Day’s residential projects especially embodied the lessons of his travel sketches, as he recorded and absorbed the qualities he admired in older buildings and ultimately translated them into his own designs. Day’s 1902 design for Cogslea, Oakley’s Mount Airy home, reflected both his attraction to historic forms and a new simplicity challenging Victorian notions. Presented in partnership with the Chestnut Hill Conservancy in honor of its 50th anniversary. This lecture is sponsored by Susan and Burn Oberwager.