NEOCLASSICAL ARCHITECTURE
FROM WILKINS TO “SWEDISH GRACE” AND PLEČNIK
The 5th Howard Foundation Lecture will be given by Professor Frank Salmon, Downing alumnus and Director of Studies in History of Art. Professor Salmon will focus on neoclassical architecture from Downing to Sweden and the work of Slovenian architect Josip Plečnik in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of his death in January 2027. The lecture will also look at the current major exhibition on Plečnik being held at Bratislava Castle, Slovakia, in 2026.
The event, on Tuesday 20th October 2026, is free but please reserve a ticket through Eventbrite using this link
The lecture will run from 6pm to 6.45pm in the Howard Theatre at Downing College, followed by a 30 minute Q+A. A reception will take place afterwards in the Grace Howard room, on the ground floor of the Howard Theatre, from 7.15pm to 7.45pm.
Professor Salmon specialises in the history of classical architecture from the ancient Graeco-Roman world to the present day. His area of particular focus is neo-classical and Italianate architecture in Britain and Europe from 1700 to 1900.
Since 2021, he has been Director of the Ax:son Johnson Centre for the Study of Classical Architecture (CSCA), based in the Faculty of Architecture and History of Art in collaboration with the Faculty of Classics and housed at the neo-classical Downing College. He has been a Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge since 2006 and was President of the College from 2015 to 2019.