Philip Modiano has been conducting detailed research into JL Petit for a number of years now. His findings have been published in for example The British Art Journal and Ecclesiology Today, and there has also been an introductory book Petit's Tours of Old Staffordshire which was listed for the 2020 William MB Berger Art History book prize.
In his talk, Philip will introduce the range pf Petit's artistic and architectural achievements and then give his focus to the latter aspect. We will learn how Petit did become a nationally important figure, opposing the extremes of Gothic Revival in church architecture and attempting to broaden the style range of what should be considered acceptable. Locating him alongside better remembered contemporaries, evidence will be presented that Petit was in fact a pioneer of preservation of design and style well ahead of John Ruskin or William Morris and foreshadowed a Progressive-Traditionalist line of thinking which continues to the present day. For further information and research after the talk (or before) go to: http://www.revpetit.com
