Laugier, Abbé Marc-Antoine

Laugier, Abbé Marc-Antoine (1713–69). French Jesuit, he became one of the earliest and most important theorists of Neo-Classicism. His Essai sur l'Architecture (1753) was profoundly influential, setting out a rational interpretation of Classicism as a logical, straightforward expression of the need for shelter, derived from the Primitive Hut of tree-trunks supporting a structure. He extolled the need for columns as opposed to those of the engaged variety or pilasters, and argued for a return to Antique principles as an antidote to all the accretions from the Renaissance period onwards that had hidden the essence of the origins of columnar and trabeated construction. The immediate influence of his views was on Soufflot, but translations into English and German carried them throughout Europe. In his Observations sur l'Architecture (1765) he recognized the grace of Gothic.

Bibliography

Builder (1980);
Fichet (ed.) (1979);
Herrmann (1962);
Laugier (1753, 1753a, 1765);
Middleton & and Watkin (1987);
Placzek (ed.) (1982);
Rykwert (1980)

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Laugier, Abbé Marc-Antoine." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Laugier, Abbé Marc-Antoine." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-LaugierAbbMarcAntoine.html

JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Laugier, Abbé Marc-Antoine." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-LaugierAbbMarcAntoine.html

Learn more about citation styles

Find thousands of answers for hundreds of subjects at Answers Encyclopedia .

All answers verified by trusted sources at Encyclopedia.com

Try Answers Encyclopedia now!

For students and teachers!

Encyclopedia.com provides students and teachers facts, information, and biographies from verified, citable sources, including:

Encyclopedia.com provides students and teachers facts, information, and biographies from verified, citable sources, including: