Sir John James Burnet (31 May 1857 – 2 July 1938) was a
Scottish
Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including:
*Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland
*Scottish English
*Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
Edwardian
The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...
architect who was noted for a number of prominent buildings in
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
and
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. He was the son of the architect
John Burnet, and later went into partnership with his father, joining an architectural firm which would become an influential force in British
Modern architecture
Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that form ...
in the 20th century.
Biography
John James Burnet was born in
Blythswood Hill, Glasgow, on 31 May 1857. He was the youngest of the three sons of the architect
John Burnet and his wife, Elizabeth Hay Bennet. They were a
Congregationalist family. John James was educated in Glasgow at the original Collegiate School, at the
Western Academy
Hyndland Secondary School is a non-denominational state comprehensive school in the Hyndland area of Glasgow, Scotland.
The school provides secondary education for children from the local area, although there are many children from other areas ...
, and at Blairlodge School,
Polmont.
Study in Paris
He trained for two years in his father's architectural offices. His parents intended him to study at the
Royal Academy Schools
The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its purpo ...
under
Richard Phené Spiers
Richard Phené Spiers (1838 – 3 October 1916 London) was an English architect and author. He occupied a unique position amongst the English architects of the latter half of the 19th century, his long mastership of the architectural school at ...
, but Spiers advised him instead to study at the
École des Beaux-Arts
École des Beaux-Arts (; ) refers to a number of influential art schools in France. The term is associated with the Beaux-Arts style in architecture and city planning that thrived in France and other countries during the late nineteenth century ...
in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. Burnet's parents were at first reluctant to send their son to a
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
country which had been subject to the political turmoil of the
Paris Commune
The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871.
During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defended ...
that year, but, in 1872, he began studying under
Jean-Louis Pascal
Jean-Louis Pascal (4 June 1837 – 17 May 1920) was an academic French architect.
Life
Born in Paris, Pascal was taught at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts by Émile Gilbert and Charles-Auguste Questel. He won the Grand Pri ...
, Spiers' former teacher. He progressed rapidly and in 1876, gained his ''Diplôme du Gouvernement'' in architecture and engineering. He also spent time there as an assistant to François Rolland. While studying in Pascal's atelier, Burnet forged a lifelong friendship with
Henri Paul Nénot.
Work as an architect
![Charing Cross Mansions - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Charing_Cross_Mansions_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1482023.jpg)
At the end of the course Burnet toured France and Italy, returning to Glasgow at the end of 1876, when he assisted his father on completing the facade of the Union Bank of Scotland building in Ingram Street. In 1878 Burnet won the competition to build the Fine Art Institute in Glasgow, his first truly independent work. The brief was to combine 'Greek with modern French Renaissance',
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but ...
still being in vogue in Glasgow at the time. The building also featured
friezes by
John Mossman
John G. Mossman (London 1817–1890) was one of a number of English sculptors who dominated the production and teaching of sculpture in Glasgow for 50 years after his arrival with his father and brothers from his native London in 1828. His fa ...
. Burnet was unsuccessful with his entry to design the
Glasgow City Chambers in 1882, but his Clyde Navigation Trust building (1882–86) ensured his success through a recession.
In 1881, Burnet was admitted as an Associate of the
Royal Institute of British Architects (ARIBA) and in 1882, his father, John Burnet senior, took him into partnership, and the practice was renamed John Burnet & Son.
John Archibald Campbell rejoined the practice in 1886 after studying under Pascal, adding his name to the practice, Burnet Son & Campbell.
Burnet Baroque
![Former Savings Bank](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Former_Savings_Bank.jpg)
John James's father retired from the practice in 1889 or 1890 at the age of seventy-five. The younger JJ Burnet and Campbell took the practice in a more adventurous direction, looking towards the London architectural scene to keep abreast of fashion and to increase their chances of winning national competitions (which usually had London assessors). Their dramatic shift in style did not always meet with favour; designs for the competitions to build the Central Thread Agency in Glasgow and the
North British Hotel
The Balmoral Hotel, originally built as the North British (Railway Station) Hotel, is a luxury hotel and landmark in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located in the heart of the city at the east end of Princes Street, the main shopping street beneath ...
in Edinburgh were rejected. Their first success in the new style was the Glasgow Athenaeum Theatre of 1891–1893, a tall American-style elevator building in a
Neo-baroque style similar to that of
John Belcher or
Arthur Beresford Pite. JJ Burnet took a study tour of Italy in 1895 to further his understanding of
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a highly decorative and theatrical style which appeared in Italy in the early 17th century and gradually spread across Europe. It was originally introduced by the Catholic Church, particularly by the Jesuits, as a means t ...
. "Burnet Baroque" was highly influential; their competitors quickly assimilated the new vogue for Neo-Baroque and by 1900 it was the common language of Glasgow building, and even influenced the winning design of the North British Hotel by William Hamilton Beattie.
In 1896, Burnet submitted designs to the competition to build the
Glasgow School of Art
The Glasgow School of Art (GSA; gd, Sgoil-ealain Ghlaschu) is a higher education art school based in Glasgow, Scotland, offering undergraduate degrees, post-graduate awards (both taught and research-led), and PhDs in architecture, fine art, and ...
; he was not successful, the commission instead being handed to a flourishing young designer called
Charles Rennie Mackintosh.
In 1896 the Burnets visited the US, and Burnet was greatly inspired by American architecture. He began to design a number of low-profile buildings with broad eaves, including many churches and public buildings around Scotland (such as Dundas Memorial Church,
Grangemouth
Grangemouth ( sco, Grangemooth; gd, Inbhir Ghrainnse, ) is a town in the Falkirk council area, Scotland. Historically part of the county of Stirlingshire, the town lies in the Forth Valley, on the banks of the Firth of Forth, east of Falkirk ...
(1894); MacLaren Memorial Church
Stenhousemuir
Stenhousemuir (; gd, Featha Thaigh nan Clach) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies within the Falkirk (council area), Falkirk council area of Scotland. The town is north-northwest of Falkirk and directly adjoins to Larbert in ...
; Public Library and Museum in
Campbeltown
Campbeltown (; gd, Ceann Loch Chille Chiarain or ) is a town and former royal burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies by Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre peninsula. Campbeltown became an important centre for Scotch whisky, and a busy fishing ...
). The inspiration of American structural techniques on Burnet's work reached a peak in 1905–1910 with his design for McGeoch's Department Store on West Campbell Street, with its strong vertical lines and the expression of the building's structure in the facade.
Campbell left the partnership in 1897 with some suggestion of Campbell's problems with
alcoholism
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...
, and the practice name reverted to John Burnet and Son. The same year, JJ Burnet was made a Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects (FRIBA) and elected President of the Glasgow Institute of Architects. In 1902, Burnet recruited a promising young architect called
Thomas Smith Tait
Thomas Smith Tait (18 June 1882 – 18 July 1954) was a Scottish modernist architect. He designed a number of buildings around the world in Art Deco and Streamline Moderne styles, notably St. Andrew's House (the headquarters of the Scottish ...
to be his assistant. Tait later became a partner in the firm and went on to be one of the most influential architects in the British
Modern architecture
Modern architecture, or modernist architecture, was an architectural movement or architectural style based upon new and innovative technologies of construction, particularly the use of glass, steel, and reinforced concrete; the idea that form ...
movement.
British Museum
As partners, Burnet and Campbell never succeeded in English architectural competitions and it was only after Campbell's departure that Burnet extended the practice south of the Border. In 1903–1904 the
Office of Works selected Burnet to design the Edward VII Galleries at the
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
in London. In 1905 Burnet opened a London office in the name of John J Burnet at 1 Montague Place (a grace-and-favour house rented to him by the Museum), taking the young Tait with him.
His original ambitious plans would have extended the Museum on all four sides, demolishing Bloomsbury properties to make way for a Parisian-style British Museum Avenue on a north axis, but only the Edward VII Galleries were actually built due to lack of funds. Construction lasted from 1906 to 1914; in 1910,
King Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910.
The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria a ...
died, and the Edward VII Galleries were opened by
King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...
and
Queen Mary in 1914.
The prestigious work on the British Museum brought in new commissions for Burnet's practice: the General Buildings in Aldwych (1909–11) and the Kodak Building on Kingsway (1910–11). This latter project was a significant milestone for the firm; the American client,
George Eastman, was not afraid of a modern design, and after rejecting several design proposals drawn up by Burnet, eventually selected a design submitted by Thomas S. Tait which was to serve as a model for future developments by the firm.
In 1907, draughtsman Norman Aitken Dick joined the partnership, and around this time the Glasgow office was designing some of its most prestigious and pioneering buildings, including the
Alhambra Theatre Glasgow
The Alhambra Theatre, Glasgow opened on 19 December 1910 at the corner of Waterloo Street and Wellington Street, Glasgow under the direction of Sir Alfred Butt and was acknowledged as one of the best equipped theatres in Britain, planned to ac ...
which was in the Modern Movement and an early example of a steel-framed building (which construction he employed the following year for the Kodak Building, London)
["Alhambra Glasgow" by Graeme Smith ] and the Sick Children's Hospital at Yorkhill. Burnet continued his study visits to the United States in 1908 and 1910, looking at the design of warehouses, hospitals, museums and galleries.
Burnet was knighted in 1914 for his work in the British Museum galleries. He was also awarded the bronze medal of the Paris Salon and elected
RSA. In 1921 he was made
ARA
ARA may refer to:
Media and the arts
* American-Romanian Academy of Arts and Sciences
* '' Artistička Radna Akcija'', compilation album released in former Yugoslavia
* Associate of the Royal Academy, denoting membership in the British Royal Aca ...
in 1921 and received the Paris gold medal in 1922. Burnet helped to found the
Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland
The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS) is the professional body for architects in Scotland.
History
Previously the (lapsed) Architectural Institute of Scotland, it was re-founded in 1916 as the Incorporation of Architects in ...
.
The inter-war years
![Sydney Harbour Bridge from Circular Quay](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/Sydney_Harbour_Bridge_from_Circular_Quay.jpg)
The advent of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
brought a time of hardship for Burnet's practice, and during this period a disagreement resulted in Tait leaving the practice to work in America. After the war, the London office began to receive commissions once more, including work on completing the Selfridges department store on Oxford Street. The Imperial War Graves Commission also commissioned war memorials from Burnet's firm in Gallipoli, Palestine and Suez (1919). Burnet took a leading role in the design of the memorials and in the work on Adelaide House, London Bridge. His health was deteriorating, however; stress-related
eczema
Dermatitis is inflammation of the Human skin, skin, typically characterized by itchiness, erythema, redness and a rash. In cases of short duration, there may be small blisters, while in long-term cases the skin may become lichenification, thick ...
, brought on by wartime hardship, professional disagreements and financial scandals in the Glasgow office, made it hard for him to work. Thomas Tait had returned to the practice after a reconciliation, and he began to take a leading role in the practice, working on the Daily Telegraph Building and Lloyds Bank on Cornhill. Burnet himself dealt with the redesign on Lomax Simpson's Unilever House project, but otherwise acted as a consultant and went into semi-retirement.
Burnet received the
Royal Gold Medal in 1923 and was elected
RA in 1925.
Retirement and Death
![The grave of James David Marwick, Warriston Cemetery](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/The_grave_of_James_David_Marwick%2C_Warriston_Cemetery.jpg)
Until 1935 he lived at Killermont, his
Arts and Crafts
A handicraft, sometimes more precisely expressed as artisanal handicraft or handmade, is any of a wide variety of types of work where useful and decorative objects are made completely by one’s hand or by using only simple, non-automated re ...
house at
Rowledge
__NOTOC__
Rowledge is a village in England on the Surrey–Hampshire border, centred south of the A31 and Farnham. Neighbouring villages include Wrecclesham, Spreakley and Frensham. To the south west of the village is the Alice Holt Forest; ...
,
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
. He then purchased a much smaller cottage, Woodhall Cottage on Woodhall Road, in
Colinton, Edinburgh. Although he kept in touch with developments in the Burnet Tait & Lorne office, he was unhappy in retirement. He died at home on 2 July 1938. His remains were cremated and his ashes were buried in his father-in-law's plot at
Warriston Cemetery
Warriston Cemetery is a cemetery in Edinburgh. It lies in Warriston, one of the northern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built by the then newly-formed Edinburgh Cemetery Company, and occupies around of land on a slightly sloping si ...
.
The Burnet Tait & Lorne practice continued to thrive after his death, and under the leadership of Thomas Smith Tait, went on to become an influential force in Modern Architecture.
Family
In 1886 he was married to Jean Watt Marwick (1864–1949), daughter of Sir
James David Marwick.
Notable works
Among his surviving works are:
* Gardner Memorial Church, Brechin (1896)
* Clyde Navigation Trust (Clydeport) Building, Robertson Street, Glasgow (1883 and 1905)
* Barony Church, High Street, Glasgow (1886)
* John McIntyre Building, University of Glasgow (
Glasgow University Union) (1886)
* Charing Cross Mansions,
Charing Cross, Glasgow
Charing Cross is a major road junction in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated north of the River Clyde at the intersection of Sauchiehall Street, St George's Road, Woodlands Road, North Street and Newton Street, as well as being at a m ...
(1891)
* Athenaeum, 8 Nelson Mandela Place, Glasgow (1886)
* New Athenaeum Theatre, 179 Buchanan Street, Glasgow (1891)
* Royal Faculty of Physicians & Surgeons of Glasgow, St Vincent Street, Glasgow (1892)
* Glasgow Savings Bank, 177 Ingram Street, Glasgow (1896)
* Albany Chambers,
Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow (1896)
* King Edward VII Gallery,
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
,
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
(1905)
* RW Forsyth's Department Store, Gordon Street, Glasgow (1896 and 1906)
* RW
Forsyth's
R. W. Forsyth's often just called Forsyth's, is a group of Scottish department stores, the largest being at 26 - 30 Princes Street in Edinburgh.
R. W. Forsyth
Robert Wallace Forsyth was born Haddington, East Lothian in 1843 the son of Alexa ...
Department Store, Princes Street,
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
(1906)
* Broomhill Trinity Congregational Church, Broomhill, Glasgow (1907)
* Kodak, Kingsway, London(1909)
* General Accident Assurance, Aldwych, London (1909)
* Restoration of
Duart Castle
Duart Castle, or ''Caisteal Dhubhairt'' in Scottish Gaelic, is a castle on the Isle of Mull, beside the Sound of Mull off the west coast of Scotland, within the council area of Argyll and Bute. The castle dates back to the 13th century and is ...
, Isle of Mull (1911)
* Wallace Scott Tailoring Institute, Cathcart, Glasgow (1913)
* Royal Institute of Chemistry, London (1914)
*
Lancashire Landing Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery
Lancashire Landing Cemetery is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery located on the Gallipoli peninsula in Turkey. It contains the graves of some of the Allied troops killed during the Battle of Gallipoli.
It is located 500 metres inla ...
(1915)
* Balliol College Chapel, Oxford (1916)
*
Selfridges Department Store, London (1919)
* Glasgow University Zoology Building (1922)
* War memorials at
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula (; tr, Gelibolu Yarımadası; grc, Χερσόνησος της Καλλίπολης, ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles ...
, and
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
*
Glasgow Cenotaph
Glasgow Cenotaph, also known as Glasgow War Memorial, is a war memorial which stands on the east side of George Square in Glasgow, in front of Glasgow City Chambers. It was originally constructed to commemorate Glaswegians killed during the ...
in George Square,
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
(1924)
*
Hunter Memorial,
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
(1924)
*
Adelaide House
Adelaide House is a Grade II listed office building in London's primary financial district, the City of London.
Location
Adelaide House is located on the north bank of the Thames, adjacent to London Bridge and St Magnus the Martyr church ...
,
London Bridge
Several bridges named London Bridge have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 1973, is a box girder bridge built from concrete and steel. It r ...
Approach, London (1925)
* Daily Telegraph Building, Fleet Street, London (1925)
* North British & Mercantile Assurance, 200 St Vincent Street, Glasgow (1925)
* Lloyds Bank, Lombard Street, London (1927)
*
Sydney Harbour Bridge, (1929)
*
University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel
The University of Glasgow Memorial Chapel is a chapel at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. It was consecrated on 4 October 1929, and is dedicated to the memory of the former students and staff of the university who died in the First World War ...
(1929)
*
Unilever House, Blackfriars, London (1930–33, with
James Lomax-Simpson
James is a common English language surname and given name:
*James (name), the typically masculine first name James
* James (surname), various people with the last name James
James or James City may also refer to:
People
* King James (disambiguat ...
)
Other work has been destroyed or demolished, including:
* McGeoch's, West Campbell Street, Glasgow (1904)
*
Kelvinside railway station, Kelvinside, Glasgow (1896)
*
Alhambra Theatre
The Alhambra was a popular theatre and music hall located on the east side of Leicester Square, in the West End of London. It was built originally as the Royal Panopticon of Science and Arts opening on 18 March 1854. It was closed after two yea ...
, 41 Waterloo Street, Glasgow (1910)
*
Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Yorkhill, Glasgow (1911)
*
Port Tewfik War Memorial, Suez, Egypt
*
Wemyss Bay
Wemyss Bay (; ) is a town on the coast of the Firth of Clyde in Inverclyde in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It is in the traditional county of Renfrewshire. It is adjacent to Skelmorlie, North Ayrshire. The town and villages have always ...
Episcopal Church (1880, demolished 1970)
Burnet's unsuccessful competition designs for prominent building projects included:
*
Glasgow Municipal Buildings (1880)
*
Usher Hall
The Usher Hall is a concert hall in Edinburgh, Scotland. It has hosted concerts and events since its construction in 1914 and can hold approximately 2,200 people in its recently restored auditorium, which is well loved by performers due to its ...
, Edinburgh (1909)
*
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...
(1891)
*
Glasgow School of Art
The Glasgow School of Art (GSA; gd, Sgoil-ealain Ghlaschu) is a higher education art school based in Glasgow, Scotland, offering undergraduate degrees, post-graduate awards (both taught and research-led), and PhDs in architecture, fine art, and ...
(1896)
References
External links
Sir John James Burnet– biography on Dictionary of Scottish Architects
Brief history of John Burnet & Sons practice
Image:England; London - The British Museum, Archive King Edward VII's Galleries ~ North Wing (1914).2.jpg, King Edward VII's Galleries, British Museum (1905)
Image:Unilever House 2.jpg, Unilever House, London
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burnet, Sir John James
1857 births
1938 deaths
19th-century Scottish architects
20th-century Scottish architects
Architects from Glasgow
People educated at Hyndland Secondary School
British alumni of the École des Beaux-Arts
Burials at Warriston Cemetery
Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Fellows of the Royal Institute of British Architects
Associates of the Royal Institute of British Architects
Knights Bachelor
Baroque Revival architects
British neoclassical architects
Recipients of the Royal Gold Medal
Royal Scottish Academicians
Royal Academicians
Scottish knights
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Modernist architects from Scotland