The East Block: An Exemplary Example of High Victorian Gothic

The East Block was designed in 1859 as one of the first Gothic Revival office buildings and it was an early example of the style’s first phase of development. The talk will focus upon how the East Block’s High Victorian Gothic style was influenced by the challenges of new urbanism. It illustrates the debates that surrounded the style’s development, including the influence of Ruskin and Scott, and contemporary scientific discoveries.