Neo-Renaissance Interiors
As mentioned above, the Neo-Renaissance style was in reality an eclectic blending of past styles, which the architect selected on the whims of his patrons. In the true Renaissance era there was a division of labour between the architect, who designed the exterior highly visible shell, and others — the artisans — who decorated and arranged the interior. The original Italian mannerist house was a place for relaxation and entertaining, convenience and comfort of the interior being a priority; in the later Baroque designs, comfort and interior design were secondary to outward appearance. This was followed by the Neoclassical period, which gave importance to the proportions and dignity of interiors, but still lost the comfort and internal convenience of the mannerist period. It was during the Neo-Renaissance period of the 19th century that the mannerist comforts were re-discovered and taken a step further. Not only did the improved building techniques of the 1850s allow the glazing of formerly open loggias and arches with the newly invented sheets of plate glass, providing the first "picture windows", but also the blending of architectural styles allowed interiors and exteriors to be treated differently. It was at this time that the concept of "furnishing styles" manifested itself, allowing distinctions to be made between interior rooms and external appearances, and indeed between the various rooms themselves. Thus the modern concept of treating a room individually, and differently from its setting and neighbours, came into its infancy. Classic examples of this are the great Rothschild house in Buckinghamshire, hybrids of various Renaissance chateaux, and 16th century English country houses, all with interiors ranging from "Versailles" to "Medici", and in the case of Mentmore Towers a huge central hall, resembling the arcaded courtyard of a Renaissance villa, conveniently glazed over, furnished in Venetian style and heated by a fireplace designed by Rubens for his house in Antwerp
Read more about this topic: Renaissance Revival Architecture