Resource Pack (University)

This year’s exhibition marks a decade of restoration of this 500 year-old . The exhibition celebrates the stories of those responsible for the restoration. We explore how they collected nature’s materials and managed the elements to form the , garden and park. The North Drive introduces the exhibition with a display of raw materials such as clay, lead, stone and wood. These materials remind us of Chatsworth’s natural foundations and the expertise involved in their transformation. This pack will enhance your understanding of Chatsworth’s restoration on your journey through the house. The Painted In the Painted Hall, created by the 1st Duke in the 17th century, you are introduced to one of four installations by our artist-in-residence, Linder Sterling. The sound of bells from the estate will ring out while incense based on a formula from the time of Julius Ceasar burns. On the above you may also notice Sterling’s addition of two vinyl capes decorated with images of rock and roll’s king. The Grotto The Grotto is built entirely from stone and its primary purpose was about supporting the Great .The fountain in the Grotto, obtained by the 1st Duke in 1692, was built to demonstrate to visitors the provision of hot and cold running water— a rarity in the 17th century. The 1st Duke’s installation of the water supply continues to feed the fountains and flush the loos at Chatsworth today. The Veiled Vestal Virgin displayed in the centre of the Grotto was sculpted by Raffaele Monti and it arrived at Chatsworth in 1847. It appears to be made of one single piece of marble; however, it consists of four separate pieces. Can you spot the joins?

The and Chapel Corridor The Chapel Corridor holds a collection of artwork spanning over 4,000 years of human creation. A great example is the fragment of the Colossal Foot from an Acrolithic stature of a goddess; the sculpture dates back to the 1st century BC.

As part of this year’s exhibition, visitors are granted a rare glimpse of the hidden pipes and workings of Chatsworth. Transparent panels are situated at either end of the corridor. Listen to the Audio Guide to learn more.

As you walk through the Chapel Corridor you will notice the Courtyard outside. The original purpose of this was to impress visitors who would cross the space to enter the Painted Hall. As part of Chatsworth Renewed, the on the east-façade have been re-gilded with 24ct gold-leaf and the stonework has been cleaned and conserved. The impressive Inner Court is built with stone quarried two miles away from Chatsworth and the same stone was used to make repairs.

The Oak The Oak Room demonstrates the influence of the 6th Duke of Devonshire. The detailed oak panelling comes from a German monastery and was fitted between 1839 and 1841. Wood is a central material here at Chatsworth. It is used in some of the most intricate and unique decoration; the pink displays a variety of samples if you would like a closer look. The carriage wheel in the centre of the Oak Room displays wood gathered from the estate in its raw form, including samples of oak, lime, cedar, ash, pine, elm, and alder. Pick them up, feel their weight, what do they smell like?

1 The Chapel The Chapel was built between 1688 and 1693 and has remained almost completely unchanged. The room is still used today for special occasions. The striking gold sculpture at the front of the Chapel is the figure of Saint Bartholomew, created by English artist, Damien Hirst. Standing at 2.5 metres tall, Hirst depicts the martyr with his own skin draped over his arm and a pair of scissors and scalpel in hand. Displayed in the centre of the Chapel is a model of Chatsworth. This was made in 1979 and it conveys the impressive scale of the . The two benches in the Chapel offer a reflection on how different materials have contributed to the evolution of Chatsworth. The coal bench represents valuable mineral resources found on Devonshire estates and the quartz bench references minerals collected for by Georgiana, the Duchess of Devonshire and her son, the 6th Duke. Amongst the fine artwork on the and of the Chapel are two depictions of Doubting Thomas, also known as Saint Thomas, the Patron Saint of Architects. The 1st Duke considered himself the architect of Chatsworth.

The The Great Chamber is the first room in the State Apartment and it was completed in the 17th century to enable King William III to hold court at Chatsworth should he visit, he did not.

The thrones you see were used during the coronation of George III and Queen Charlotte in the 18th century and they were carved by Katharine Naish. The uplifted floorboards reveal the progress made over the years during Chatsworth’s effort to mend the sinking and to keep the State Apartment in its impressive condition. Look into the garden at the Cascade, this was created 300 years ago and took seventeen years and two attempts before it was finished. The water for the Cascade comes from the moorland behind the top of the hill along a series of man-made streams and an aqueduct. Each step is created differently causing the sound of water to change as it falls. The The ‘withdrawing’ room was intended to allow select members of the Court to move away from the crowds in the Great Chamber. This room displays prized English Mortlake tapestries which date back to the mid-1630s. Hung here by the 6th Duke in the 1830s, the tapestries are a symbol of wealth and status and would take around 2 years each to make. Due to light exposure, the tapestries eventually lost their vibrancy and although they cannot be fully restored, they have recently been cleaned and conserved to honour the Flemish weavers’ expertise and skill. The embroidery ring shows close-up details of the tapestries—can you find them? Have a go on the looms, look at the detailed panels. The State Music Room The State Music Room, formally called the Second Withdrawing Room, has walls lined with stamped and gilded leather. The gilding was designed to impress the 6th Duke’s visitors. The 1st Duke had previously used gold to embellish and protect the most important sills, , and ornaments on the outside of the house. There are gold-leaf pads and tools displayed which are used by skilled decorators in the gilding process. This room celebrates the 6th Duke’s influence and brings together in the manner of Andre-Charles Boulle, the French Cabinet maker who worked for Louis XIV, King of France. While the 6th Duke was redecorating Chatsworth, Boulle’s technique was mimicked by decorating the surfaces of furniture with pewter, brass, and turtleshell.

Another interesting feature of the State Music Room is the painting of the violin which appears to hang from a peg in the doorway. It’s known as a ‘trompe l’oeil.’ This refers to the art technique which deceives the eye and causes a painting to appear 3D. 2 The State Bed Chamber The State Bed Chamber is the second most important room in the State Apartment and was therefore decorated more luxuriously than others; it continues to contain many rare and expensive items. Like the State Music Room, the State Bed Chamber also has leather coverings, but the current Duchess of Devonshire decided ‘one room of leather was quite enough.’ The original Brussels tapestry now hangs again to cover the leather. After the death and funeral of King George, the 4th Duke received this bed as a perquisite. Given the family’s enthusiasm for contemporary art, pieces of the 12th Duke’s ceramic collection are displayed around the house. The Duke’s collection celebrates material, unusual shapes, and bright colours. The installation seen in the State Bed Chamber is by an Australian ceramicist called Pippin Drysdale. It adds a modern flair to the State Apartment. As part of her residency, Linder Sterling has created a crinoline-type construction hovering above a gilded and carved wooden support, both are incomplete. Sterling intended the spatial relationship to generate an ambiguous structure, neither functional, nor purely decorative. The silver incense burner will burn incense created from aromatic woods and herbs from Chatsworth Estate twice a day. Please make your way through the next two small to reach the South Sketch Gallery.

The South Sketch Gallery The South Sketch Gallery celebrates the 5th Duke and the Duchess Georgiana. The Duchess, an amateur geologist, developed an extensive mineral collection which is displayed in various cabinets. There are three paintings of Duchess Georgiana displayed in the South Sketch Gallery. In one painting she is depicted as the Goddess Diana and is painted with one extra toe. In the second painting, Duchess Georgiana is seen wearing a large hat in a portrait by Thomas Gainsborough. Ask the guide the story behind this portrait. The South Sketch is a great example of how Chatsworth’s conservation honours the Chatsworth’s past and welcomes the future. In 2009, Friends of Chatsworth were invited to sign the walls before the new material went up. During the conservation, signatures of craftspeople were found under the floorboards. Workers arenow encouraged by architects to leave their mark on Chatsworth, like a time-capsule.

The West Sketch Gallery As you walk down the West Sketch Gallery look at the different types of marble used to create the table tops.

The North Sketch Gallery The installation of the walls of the North Sketch Gallery is the work of Jacob van der Beugel and was completed in 2014. The installation has 659 handmade, ochre coloured ceramic panels and it is the most significant art installation at Chatsworth since the creation of the6th Duke’s Sculpture Gallery in 1832. It is a family portrait based on the mitochondrial DNA of the 12th Duke and Duchess and Lord and Lady Burlington. The DNA we all share is represented on the central ‘Everyman’ panel, look closely and you can see yourself in the portrait. Two cabinets in the North Sketch display ceramics which date from 1500 to the present day. The display reminds us of how Chatsworth has evolved over the centuries. You can find out which artists’ work is featured on the cards in the room.

3 The Library and Ante Library The Library demonstrates the 6th Duke’s passion for books. Both rooms together contain over 17,000 books. Before the room was refurbished in 1815 it was a where the family could exercise in bad weather. The 6th Duke commissioned the carpet around 1830, you will notice how the carpet mimics the patterns ofthe painted ceiling. It is a British Axminster and rivalled the French Savonnerie carpets. The Library continues to be used by the family today. The Room This small room forms the junction between the 1st Duke’s Baroque House and the 6th Duke’s new North Wing created in the 1820s. Featured in the Dome Room is Natasha Daintry’s ‘Sowing Colour’ which was commissioned by the current Duke and Duchess. The creation of the 235 porcelain pots took 4 years and 1 tonne of clay. The installation brings colour and light to the Dome Room and was inspired by the plants in the vegetable garden at Chatsworth. Growing from small to large, the clay pots were influenced by the Fibonacci sequence where each number following the first two is the sum of the two preceding numbers.

The Great This room was built as part of the 6th Duke’s renovation and it is still occasionally used for formal dinners. The first dinner was hosted for future Queen Victoria in 1832.

There are various types of glass displayed on the Great Dining Room table. The pink glassware is known as ‘Cranberry glass’ and it is created by adding a touch of gold to magma. This technique was first used in the Roman Empire 1st century AD. In the pink cabinets are other samples of historic glass used or found here at Chatsworth. Most notably, fragments of the Great Conservatory, of which a scale model is also displayed in this room.

The chandelier hanging above the Great Dining Room table has roughly 2,400 drops of glass which fit together like a puzzle, all are handmade. It is cleaned once a year to keep it sparkling. It takes 3 people 3 days. Hidden in the top ‘nest’ of the chandelier is an envelope from the 1980s which has a photograph of people cleaning it back then. The New Gallery Make your way to the New Gallery to learn more about Chatsworth Renewed. The gallery offers an array of fascinating finds which have been made during the restoration. It is also an opportunity to dress up and have your photo taken.

The Sculpture Gallery Built by the 6th Duke, the gallery contains one of the foremost 19th century contemporary collections of marble sculpture. The room was inspired by a gallery in the Vatican but the 6th Duke admitted it was in a ‘smaller scale.’ Chatsworth is home to many exotic stone and marble and plinths. Many of the plinths in the Sculpture Gallery are igneous rocks. The 6th Duke exchanged raw materials as well as ideas about sculpture and with Italian and Russian associates. Some aspects of the Sculpture Gallery are more local to Chatsworth, for example, the pieces of limestone in the surround are from Derbyshire.

As a contrasting addition to the 19th century collection, you will experience Maxwell Sterling’s installation in the Sculpture Gallery. It features the voices of women who work or have worked at Chatsworth. Each woman speaks of aspects of Chatsworth which fascinate her. Linder Sterling’s artwork also features on either side of the gallery.

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