Symposium to highlight Italian influence on Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson considered Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio an architectural mentor. That relationship will be explored during a daylong symposium sponsored jointly by Poplar Forest and Lynchburg College on Saturday, April 25.

"Learning From Palladio: Renaissance Reflections at Poplar Forest" connects the 500th anniversary of Palladio's birth (1508 - 1580) with the 200th anniversary of Jefferson's retirement in 1809 to Poplar Forest.

The symposium brings together four scholars who will explain Palladio's original context in Renaissance architecture, what makes Palladio's villas so appealing, how Palladian architecture found its way into

Virginia, and how Jefferson used Palladio to create his own personal style in America.

The day begins at Lynchburg College at 8:30 a.m. in Sydnor Performance Hall, Elliot & Rosel Schewel Hall. Speakers are Calder Loth, senior architectural historian, Virginia Department of Historic Resources; Travis McDonald, director of architectural restoration, Poplar Forest; Delane Karalow, assistant professor of art, Lynchburg College; and Stephen Wassell, professor of mathematics, Sweet Briar College.

Participants are on their own for lunch and will make their way to Poplar Forest by 2 p.m., where they will receive a tour of the house, grounds, and wing, followed by a reception at 4 p.m.

The day's events are $15 (students free), a real bargain considering normal admission at Poplar Forest is $10.

The symposium is co-sponsored by Poplar Forest and the John M. Turner Endowment in the Humanities at Lynchburg College.

For more information: 434/534-8123 or travis@poplarforest.org. For the complete schedule and online registration, check: www.poplarforest.org/palladiosymposium.html.

About Poplar Forest

Poplar Forest is Thomas Jefferson's secluded plantation and retreat home, now a National Historic Landmark that recently was nominated by the United States as a World Heritage Site. Exhibiting award-winning restoration and archaeology, Poplar Forest offers tours, special events and school outreach programs. Located in historic Bedford County, Virginia, near Lynchburg, Poplar Forest is open April through November, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, except Tuesday and Thanksgiving Day (closed). For more information about Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest and the 200th Anniversary, call 434/525-186 or visit www.poplarforest.org.

About Lynchburg College

Lynchburg College is a four-year private college in central Virginia enrolling 2,400 students in liberal arts and sciences, as well as professional and graduate studies. For more information, check: www.lynchburg.edu.