Enfilade

Looking Ahead: The Future of the Country House
The Attingham Trust 60th Anniversary Conference
The Royal Geographical Society, London, 12-13 October 2012

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The Attingham Trust celebrates its sixtieth anniversary with a conference considering the current state of historic houses and house museums across three continents, in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the United States and Australia. With the generous support of the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art speakers from each of those countries discuss successful current developments as well as the varying problems that each country faces – including the rapid decline of the traditional house museum in the USA, the attempts to preserve houses in the Republic of Ireland, and the developing role of the historic house in Australian conservation. The British country house is studied from the point of view of private and public owners including impressive case studies and depressing cuts in funding, and illuminated from an academic, curatorial and dramatic perspective, from Nikolaus Pevsner to Downton Abbey.

This conference is open to all (alumni and non-­‐alumni) and promises to be a very stimulating event and we hope to see as many of you there as possible. The cost of the conference is £55 per day, to include all refreshments. The programme, a booking form and our Paypal link (if you wish to pay this way) can be found on the Conference page of our website. Alternative payment methods are detailed on the booking form. NB: Every booking and payment must be accompanied by a fully-­‐ completed and returned booking form.

There will be a special rate of £30 per day for students (under-­‐graduate and post-­‐graduate) studying History of Art, Architecture, Heritage Studies or a related subject. Places are limited. Please apply stating your place of study and subject.

There will be an alumni event on the Friday evening at the House of Lords. A ticket for this event is included with attendance on at least one day of the conference. If you are an alumnus and unable to come to the conference but want to come to the evening event, you are extremely welcome but please note that you will need to purchase a ticket for £55. Places at this event are limited so please apply for a ticket from Rebecca Parker sooner rather than later. For all further enquiries please contact Rebecca Parker at rebecca.parker@attinghamtrust.org or +44 20 7253 9057.

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F R I D A Y ,  1 2  O C T O B E R  2 0 1 2

9.00  Registration and coffee

9.45  Welcome
John Lewis, Chairman, The Attingham Trust and Annabel Westman, Director, The Attingham Trust

10.00  Confessions of a Country House Snooper: Tim Knox interviews John Harris
Tim Knox, Director, The Sir John Soane’s Museum John Harris, Architectural Historian

Session – Changing Perceptions of the Country House in Britain
Chair: Martin Postle, Assistant Director, Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art

10.50  Studying the Country House: Views from the Academy
Giles Waterfield, The Attingham Trust

11.25  The Country House in The Buildings of England, 1951-­‐2011
Charles O’Brien, Series Editor, Pevsner Architectural Guides

12.00  Country House Collections: What Do They Mean Today?
Christopher Ridgway, Curator, Castle Howard

12.45  LUNCH

Session – New Visions for Old Houses: The Private Perspective
Chair: Edward Harley, President of the Historic Houses Association

14.00  Introduction
Edward Harley, President of the Historic Houses Association

14.15  The Buccleuch Estates
The Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, KBE DL

14.50  Burghley House in the Twenty-­‐First Century
Miranda Rock, Burghley House

15.45  Perspectives on the Historic House
Julian Fellowes, Writer and broadcaster

17.00  Close
Alumni Drinks at the House of Lords

S  A T U R D A Y ,  1 3  O C T O B E R  2 0 1 2

9.00 Registration and coffee

Session – Houses in Trust: The Country House in Public/Charitable Ownership
Chair: Giles Waterfield, The Attingham Trust

9.30  The Crisis of the Country House in Local Government Care
Jeremy Musson, Architectural Historian

10.05  The National Trust and Its Country Houses
Lisa White, Chairman of the National Trust Arts Panel

10.40  Presenting the Historic House
Anna Keay, Director, The Landmark Trust

Session – The Irish Country House
Chair: John Redmill, Irish Georgian Society

11.45  “Tombstones of a departed ascendancy”: The Irish Country House since Independence
Terence Dooley, Director of CSHIHE, National University of Ireland, Maynooth

12.20  The Work of the Irish Heritage Trust
Kevin Baird, Director, Irish Heritage Trust

13.00  LUNCH

Session – Time to Rethink? The House Museum in the United States
Chair: Peter Trippi, Editor, Fine Art Connoisseur

14.15  Falling Down: The Current State of the Historic House in America
Sean Sawyer, Executive Director, The Royal Oak Foundation

14.40  Newport: A Case Study in Preserving Great Houses, Great Landscapes and a Great City
John Tschirch, Director of Museum Affairs, Newport Preservation Society

15.15  The American House Museum in Historical Perspective
Craig Hanson, Associate Professor, Calvin College, Michigan

Session – The Australian Country House: Past and Future
Chair: His Excellency Mr John Dauth, High Commissioner for Australia

16.00  The Country House in Australia: Setting the Scene
Gini Lee, Professor, University of Melbourne

16.30  The Country House in Contemporary Australia
Mark Taylor, Professor, University of Newcastle, Australia