KATHERINE SHONFIELD
The bold-as-brass initials of Countess Elizabeth, Bess of Hardwick, stamped in black against the sky over Hardwick Hall, make one of the most memorable sights in British architecture. Few clients have so successfully laid claim to their commission, and with such panache, literally covering it with their own signature. Even now Hardwick Hall's attribution to the architect Robert Smythson is not 100 per cent certain. Bess has been the unchallenged leader in client chutzpah for the past ...
Subscribe to the AJ from £3 per week
For less than the cost of a pint you can have the magazine, iPad edition, full access to TheAJ.co.uk and the amazing AJBuildingsLibrary.co.uk. Subscribe now and experience architecture from a British perspective. The AJ - it's your journal.
Architects' Journal Subscribers:
If you are an AJ subscriber please sign in with your email address and click submit:
Not an AJ subscriber?
Subscribe today for immediate access at a special introductory rate
Need help? Call 0844 848 8859 and our customer service team will be happy to assist.
Access over 100 years of projects
