Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
A lecture duet by Ralph Ghoche (Barnard College) and Estelle Thibault (École nationale supérieure d'architecture Paris-Belleville), moderated by Martin Bressani (McGill University)
Inspired by thirteenth-century gothic architecture, Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc understood ornament as the medium through which the vital energies of the living world became visible. Ornament distilled the anatomical logic of the plants or animals it imitated, reaching back to primordial, pagan cults of nature and acquiring a regenerative power for the modern age. In this lecture duet—hosted and moderated by _Viollet-le-Duc: Drawing Worlds*_ co-curator Martin Bressani—Ralph Ghoche and Estelle Thibault explore, respectively, the contrasting ornamental philosophies of the Romantic/Eclectic and the Neo-Gothic movements, and the “natural laws” that guided nineteenth century ornamentation design in industrial arts education.
Ralph Ghoche is an assistant professor in the Department of Architecture at Barnard College. He is the author of _Ornament and Symbol in French Romantic Architecture: Simon-Claude Constant-Dufeux,_ published by McGill-Queen’s University Press in 2025. His current research is centered on French colonial architecture in Algeria during the nineteenth century, with a particular focus on the architectural, urban and territorial interventions of the Catholic Church in Algiers.
Estelle Thibault is a professor of architectural history and theory at École nationale supérieure d’architecture Paris-Belleville. Her research focuses on the history of architectural theories and ornament in late nineteeth-century France, as well as the history of architectural education. She is currently working on the reception of Gottfried Semper in the French-speaking cultural context.
Martin Bressani is the William C. Macdonald Emeritus Professor at McGill University’s Peter G-H Fu School of Architecture in Montréal. He is the author of _Architecture and the Historical Imagination: Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc 1814-1879_ (Ashgate, 2014) and coeditor of _Gothic Revival Worldwide. A.W.N. Pugin’s Global Influence_ (Leuven University Press, 2017); _The Companions to the History of Architecture—Nineteenth-Century Architecture_ (Wiley Blackwell, 2017); and _Narrating the Globe: The Emergence of World Histories of Architecture_ (MIT Press, 2024).
A Lee B. Anderson Memorial Lecture Duet
Lee Anderson, who worked for a time as an arts education teacher, has been referred to as the godfather of the Gothic revival in America. It is largely because of his impressive personal collection that the style has been rekindled among designers and other tastemakers. Lee passed away in 2010, but he left a legacy of philanthropic support through the Lee B. Anderson Memorial Foundation, whose mission is to support programs and organizations that advance an appreciation for the decorative arts.
*This event is presented in conjunction with _Viollet-le-Duc Drawing Worlds,_ on view at the BGC Gallery through May 24.
A lecture duet by Ralph Ghoche (Barnard College) and Estelle Thibault (École nationale supérieure d'architecture Paris-Belleville), moderated by Martin Bressani (McGill University)
Inspired by thirteenth-century gothic architecture, Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc understood ornament as the medium through which the vital energies of the living world became visible. Ornament distilled the anatomical logic of the plants or animals it imitated, reaching back to primordial, pagan cults of nature and acquiring a regenerative power for the modern age. In this lecture duet—hosted and moderated by _Viollet-le-Duc: Drawing Worlds*_ co-curator Martin Bressani—Ralph Ghoche and Estelle Thibault explore, respectively, the contrasting ornamental philosophies of the Romantic/Eclectic and the Neo-Gothic movements, and the “natural laws” that guided nineteenth century ornamentation design in industrial arts education.
Ralph Ghoche is an assistant professor in the Department of Architecture at Barnard College. He is the author of _Ornament and Symbol in French Romantic Architecture: Simon-Claude Constant-Dufeux,_ published by McGill-Queen’s University Press in 2025. His current research is centered on French colonial architecture in Algeria during the nineteenth century, with a particular focus on the architectural, urban and territorial interventions of the Catholic Church in Algiers.
Estelle Thibault is a professor of architectural history and theory at École nationale supérieure d’architecture Paris-Belleville. Her research focuses on the history of architectural theories and ornament in late nineteeth-century France, as well as the history of architectural education. She is currently working on the reception of Gottfried Semper in the French-speaking cultural context.
Martin Bressani is the William C. Macdonald Emeritus Professor at McGill University’s Peter G-H Fu School of Architecture in Montréal. He is the author of _Architecture and the Historical Imagination: Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc 1814-1879_ (Ashgate, 2014) and coeditor of _Gothic Revival Worldwide. A.W.N. Pugin’s Global Influence_ (Leuven University Press, 2017); _The Companions to the History of Architecture—Nineteenth-Century Architecture_ (Wiley Blackwell, 2017); and _Narrating the Globe: The Emergence of World Histories of Architecture_ (MIT Press, 2024).
A Lee B. Anderson Memorial Lecture Duet
Lee Anderson, who worked for a time as an arts education teacher, has been referred to as the godfather of the Gothic revival in America. It is largely because of his impressive personal collection that the style has been rekindled among designers and other tastemakers. Lee passed away in 2010, but he left a legacy of philanthropic support through the Lee B. Anderson Memorial Foundation, whose mission is to support programs and organizations that advance an appreciation for the decorative arts.
*This event is presented in conjunction with _Viollet-le-Duc Drawing Worlds,_ on view at the BGC Gallery through May 24.
