USA 1980 "American Architecture"

Issue Date	09.10.1980
ID	Michel: 1445-1448 Scott: 1838-1841 Stanley Gibbons: 1811-1814 Yvert: 1298-1301 UPU: N/A Category: Ot
Design
Stamps in set	4
Value
Size (width x height)
Layout	40 stamps per sheet
Products	FDC x 4
Paper
Perforation	11x11
Print Technique	Engraved, black and red
Printed by	Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Quantity	152,420,000
Issuing Authority	U.S. Postal Service

This se-tenant block of four shows important American buildings dating from the 19th century. The stamps illustrate the Smithsonian Institution, the Trinity Church, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and the Lyndhurst.

"Smithsonian Institution, James Renwick"

James Renwick

James Renwick was the architect of the Smithsonian Institution building in Washington, DC that is popularly known as "The Castle." Renwick also is known for designing Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York City. His other important buildings include Grace Church in New York City; the first Corcoran Gallery, now named the Renwick Gallery, in Washington, DC; and the Main Hall at Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY.
Architect James Renwick won the competition to design the building, and construction began in 1847. It was completed in 1855 and is commonly called "the Castle" After more than 150 years, the institution has grown to 19 museums, one zoo, and nine research centers. Among the most popular are the National Postal Museum, the Air and Space Museum, the Zoological Park, and the Museum of Natural History.
The National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) is part of the Smithsonian Institution, the world's preeminent museum and research complex. The Museum is dedicated to inspiring curiosity, discovery, and learning about the natural world through its unparalleled research, collections, exhibitions, and education outreach programs. Opened in 1910, the green-domed museum on the National Mall was among the first Smithsonian building constructed exclusively to house the national collections and research facilities.
Highlights Dinosaurs; history and culture of Africa; Janet Annenberg Hooker Hall of Geology, Gems, and Minerals; Hope diamond; Kenneth E. Behring Family Hall of Mammals; Sant Ocean Hall; David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins; Butterfly Pavilion Whether looking at the history and cultures of Africa, describing our earliest Mammalian ancestor or primate diversity around the world, examining ancient life forms including the ever popular dinosaurs, or exploring the beauty of rare gemstones such as uniquely colored diamonds, the Museum's temporary and permanent exhibitions serve to educate, enlighten and entertain millions of visitors each year. The main building on the National Mall contains 1.5 million square feet of space overall and 325,000 square feet of exhibition and public space; altogether the Museum is the size of 18 football fields, and houses over 1000 employees. With a growing network of interactive websites, the Museum is transforming itself into a hub for national and international electronic education, accessible to anyone with access to the internet.

Other stamps of the set

"Lyndhurst, Tarrytown, NY, Alexander Jackson Davis" A designer of major public buildings and private homes, Alexander Jackson Davis is credited with introducing the "castle" to the Hudson River Valley. With the completion of Lyndhurst in Tarrytown, NY on the Hudson River, came the comparison of that river to the Rhine of Europe. Davis is known for his success with the Greek Revival style, exemplified by the state capitol buildings which he designed for Raleigh, NC, and Indianapolis, IN. He perhaps is known better for his work on country houses in a sub-style of Gothic known as "picturesque."	"Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Frank Furness" Frank Furness established an architectural partnership in Philadelphia after returning from service in the Civil War. He solidified his reputation with his design of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, 1872-1876, in which he fused elements of neoclassical and Gothic revival architecture in a manner suggestive of the contemporary French style. With that design, Furness began the transition in American architecture from the derivative academic buildings of the previous generation toward a more highly decorated Victorian style. His work, which includes many private and public structures in the Philadelphia area, had a strong effect on Louis Sullivan, the leading architect of the next generation who worked for Furness as a draftsman.	"Trinity Church, Boston, Henry Hobson Richardson" Henry Hobson Richardson was one of the most innovative designers during the latter part of the 19th century. He introduced a massive yet simple masonry architecture, inspired by the Romanesque, for which he became famous. Trinity Church, his most elegant religious structure, was built according to a cruciform plan in yellow-gray granite and brownstone. Its crossing is capped by a massive lantern, the dominant element in a pyramidal composition modeled on Salamanca Cathedral in Spain. Richardson said that in his work he sought "a peacefully quiet and massive treatment of wall surfaces."

Products and associated philatelic items

FDC		Stamps Sheet

References

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