Pitzhanger Manor, Sir John Soane manor house

Pitzhanger Manor is an English country house famous as the home of neoclassical architect, Sir John Soane. Built between 1800 and 1804 in Walpole Park Ealing, then to the west of London), the Regency Manor is a rare and spectacular example of a building designed, built and lived in by Sir John Soane himself. Soane intended it as a domestic space to entertain guests in, as well as a family home for a dynasty of architects, starting with his sons.
Pitzhanger Manor and Gallery was established as a heritage attraction in 1987, later showing contemporary art exhibitions from 1996. In 2015, the Pitzhanger closed for a major conservation project to restore the Grade I listed building[1] to Soane’s original designs, and upgrade the contemporary Gallery. The three-year project was led by Ealing Council, in collaboration with Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery Trust and with the aid of the National Lottery Heritage Fund. On 16 March 2019 Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery re-opened, revealing Soane’s original design for the first time in over 175 years.

The Manor (1804)
Typical of Soane’s architectural style, Pitzhanger Manor is highly neo-classical in design, with elements of Italian Renaissance architecture and stylistic techniques characteristic of Soane himself.
Soane took inspiration from Romano-Grecian art and architecture, often employing them into his neoclassical designs. As Soane has recently been on his Grand Tour, Pitzhanger became exemplary of this stylistic influence. The Manor’s neoclassical features include: meanders, caryatids, ionic columns, the iconographic eagles with laurel wreaths, and so forth. He was particularly inspired by sites in Italy, such as the Tribunal Arch of Constantine in his design of Pitzhanger. This architecture would have been highly complementary to the collection of Classical antiquities he housed in the Manor. The influence of Renaissance Italy, especially Palladian architecture, can be seen in its almost square design – barring the Dance Wing. Among these influences, Soane incorporated in his own architectural motifs: he included canopy ceilings, a masterful use of light and shadow, as well as economic and optical devices.

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