1861 - 1933
Although he began his career as a painter and etcher and never gave up working in these media, Charles A. Platt is best remembered for his work as an architect and garden designer. He studied at the National Academy (Antique, 1874-5, 1878-81; Life, 1878-81) and the Art Students League. He executed his first etching plate in 1881, a year before leaving for extended study in Europe. Platt worked at the Académie Julian in Paris with Gustave Boulanger and Jules Lefebvre, making occasional trips to Italy and, apparently, back to the United States.
Settled in New York by 1887, he continued to paint and etch landscapes and was elected to the Society of American Artists in 1888. Walker designed his own summer home at Cornish NH in 1890, which led to other residential commissions at Cornish, most executed in a symmetrical, Italian renaissance style. A trip to study Italian villas in 1892 clarified his views on architectural and garden design, which he published in a series of articles in Harper's New Monthly Magazine (1893) and his book Italian Gardens (1894). He soon turned from painting to architecture, ultimately designing such structures as the Freer Art Gallery, Washington D.C., the Hanna Building and Theatre, Cleveland, and buildings on the campuses of the University of Illinois and the Phillips Academy, Andover Massachusetts.
Between 1921 and 1924 Platt served on the Academy's Council. For the five years preceding his death in Cornish in 1933, he was president of the American Academy in Rome. The National Academy possesses a drawing by Platt of the Richmond Beach State Park, Staten Island, New York and over 35 of his etchings.
Settled in New York by 1887, he continued to paint and etch landscapes and was elected to the Society of American Artists in 1888. Walker designed his own summer home at Cornish NH in 1890, which led to other residential commissions at Cornish, most executed in a symmetrical, Italian renaissance style. A trip to study Italian villas in 1892 clarified his views on architectural and garden design, which he published in a series of articles in Harper's New Monthly Magazine (1893) and his book Italian Gardens (1894). He soon turned from painting to architecture, ultimately designing such structures as the Freer Art Gallery, Washington D.C., the Hanna Building and Theatre, Cleveland, and buildings on the campuses of the University of Illinois and the Phillips Academy, Andover Massachusetts.
Between 1921 and 1924 Platt served on the Academy's Council. For the five years preceding his death in Cornish in 1933, he was president of the American Academy in Rome. The National Academy possesses a drawing by Platt of the Richmond Beach State Park, Staten Island, New York and over 35 of his etchings.
