Peter Marshall will present “Thomas Jefferson’s Architecture” at 3 p.m. on Sunday, July 16, as part of the Martinsville-Henry County Historical Society’s monthly Sunday Afternoon Lecture.
Jefferson was America’s first architect who mentored several of the nation’s first professional architects. His creations include public works, such as The University of Virginia and the Virginia state capitol, and private structures, such as Monticello and Poplar Forest. Marshall’s presentation will highlight Jefferson’s creations, both famous and obscure.
Marshall is a TV producer, director, writer, editor and videographer. He has worked for both commercial and public television stations. He has won three regional Emmy awards. He produced his first Jefferson-related segment about Poplar Forest for WVIRTV in Charlottesville in 1988. In 1990 he produced a documentary about the state capitol for public television in the Washington, DC, market. These two projects sparked his interest in Thomas Jefferson as an architect. He is currently seeking funding to produce an hour-long documentary for public television.
“As a student at the College of William and Mary, Thomas Jefferson purchased his first book on the subject and later assembled one of the largest libraries on architecture in America,” said John Phillips, president of the Historical Society. “He was particularly influenced by the classical style of Andrea Palladio, who emphasized symmetry, proportion, and the use of columns. These principles then came to define the architecture of the early United States.”
Admission to the Sunday Afternoon Lecture series is free, made possible by corporate sponsors, Carter Bank & Trust and The Lester Group.
The Historic Henry County Courthouse is fully handicap accessible.
