English Farmhouses

A quantity surveyor in private practice, R.J. Brown is an acclaimed writer on English vernacular and a member of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. His books include Windmills of England, The English Country Cottage and Timber-Framed Buildings of England. Although receiving no formal training in fine art, he has been an acknowledged graphic artist for some years, specializing in fine pen-and-ink drawings of period buildings. He is a member of the Society of Graphic Fine Arts and also the Society of Architectural Illustrators. He has exhibited both in London and locally in East Anglia and has received commissions from individuals and companies for his 'house-portraits'. He lives near Colchester. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition. The farmhouse is an essential and attractive part of the English landscape and thousands of examples still grace the countryside. In this superbly illustrated book, R. J. Brown examines the changing role of these traditional buildings. He shows the farmhouse at the centre of the economic, social and farming life of the community, and the many buildings which have lost their lands and have since been modified for other uses. This leads him to describe in words and detailed drawings the diversity of house types including the mediaeval open-hall and the so-called 'double-piled' house, the first house type designed not for the needs of the farm but for the comfort of the family. The significance of geological variations for the pattern of agriculture and the consequences for the type of farmhouse is also explained. In addition, the book discusses the various materials employed and the resulting distinctive regional variations. Profusely illustrated with the author's fine pen-and-ink drawings, this volume is an authoritative guide to one of the most characteristic and well-loved aspects of the English countryside.