Exhibits

264_infinitemeasureexhibitINFINITE MEASURE
Rachel Fletcher, Curator

This educational exhibit unites the arts and sciences in a unique presentation of geometry and proportion. According to the Boston Globe, it “shimmers with the hope of recreating that joy [of discovery] for viewers of all ages.” INFINITE MEASURE is designed to illuminate the geometric underpinnings of natural and human forms and to show how these proportions manifest themselves in art, music, architecture, and philosophy. In addition to the principles of geometry, the exhibit shows how classical western concepts of unity, harmony, and beauty developed and why they affect our thinking today. [more]

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HARMONY BY DESIGN:
THE GOLDEN MEAN

Rachel Fletcher & Beverly Russell, Curators

The golden mean proportion is evident throughout the history of building and interiors, appearing in such architectural icons as Stonehenge, the Great Pyramid, the Parthenon and Hadrian’s Pantheon. In more modern times, the golden mean has graced the proportions of Gothic cathedrals, Palladian villas and the works of twentieth-century architects and designers, including Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright and Philip Johnson. [more]

Poplar Forest

Thomas Jefferson, first-floor plan, 1806

 

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by John Neilson, c. 1820, (N–350, K–Pl.14), courtesy of The Jefferson Papers of the University of Virginia, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville.