Natural Fashion

as envisioned & drawn by Jefferson
image from wikipedia

Jefferson's sketch of the University of Virginia Rotunda

The rotunda at the University of Virginia was planned by Thomas Jefferson to represent the authority of nature and the power of reason. The classical architecture of Palladio best represented the ideals of Jefferson's vision for the architecture. The University's Library was originally housed in the Rotunda-Jefferson considered the library to be the beacon of enlightenment and wisdom.

Jefferson is the only US President to found a university- and to design one.

University of Virginia founded 1819

image from here

Detail of University of Virginia map
by Herman Böÿe, 1827.
University of Virginia Library

(image from here)

Campus Plan University of Virginia c.1825
image from wikipedia

the Serpentine Wall

University of Virginia

image from here

& then there's this- It reminds me of a bank or two I've seen.

Regent's University founded 1978 by Pat Robertson

Virginia Beach VA

images from wikipedia

this- all there is to say is oh NO! No prayer can help this view.

Oral Roberts University here

founded 1963

Tulsa Oklahoma

& this. trying, failing miserably to channel a little Jeffersonian vibe.

Liberty University founded 1971 by Jerry Falwell

Lynchburg, Virginia

image here

read more about the architecture of the University of Virginia -the Ideological Spaces of the Academical Village by Jim Cocola here

read more about the Rotunda Occulus here

.
Gone?

image of the Jefferson Memorial here

"Its soul, its climate, its equality, liberty, laws, people, and manners.

My god! how little do my countrymen

know what precious blessings they are in possession of,

and which no other people on earth enjoy!"

image from the Library of Congress

HOW CHRISTIAN WERE THE FOUNDING FATHERS? NYTIMES MAGAZINE HERE , A MUST READ

The Texas Board of Education has removed Thomas Jefferson and the influence of the Enlightenment from the Texas curriculum, "replacing him with religious right icon John Calvin."

from AP reporter April Castro
AUSTIN, Texas — A far-right faction of the Texas State Board of Education succeeded Friday in injecting conservative ideals into social studies, history and economics lessons that will be taught to millions of students for the next decade.
Teachers in Texas will be required to cover the Judeo-Christian influences of the nation's Founding Fathers, but not highlight the philosophical rationale for the separation of church and state. Curriculum standards also will describe the U.S. government as a "constitutional republic," rather than "democratic," and students will be required to study the decline in value of the U.S. dollar, including the abandonment of the gold standard.
Following three days of impassioned and acrimonious debate, the board gave preliminary approval to the new standards with a 10-5 party line vote. A final vote is expected in May, after a public comment period that could produce additional amendments and arguments.- April Castro AP reporter

Board member Cynthia Dunbar wants to change a standard having students study the impact of Enlightenment ideas on political revolutions from 1750 to the present. She wants to drop the reference to Enlightenment ideas (replacing with “the writings of”) and to Thomas Jefferson. She adds Thomas Aquinas and others. Jefferson’s ideas, she argues, were based on other political philosophers listed in the standards.

The board approves the amendment, taking Thomas Jefferson OUT of the world history standards.

Here is what the Library of Congress says about Jefferson’s influence: “Recognized in Europe as the author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson quickly became a focal point or lightning rod for revolutionaries in Europe and the Americas.” The Library of Congress notes, in particular, Jefferson’s influence on revolutionaries in France (including on the Declaration of the Rights of Man), other European nations, South America and Haiti.

No Declaration of Independence?
Gone

image from here

University of Virginia ?

Non existent?

University of Virginia image from here

Enlighten the people generally, and
tyranny and oppressions of the body
and mind will vanish like the evil spirits
at the dawn of the day.
Thomas Jefferson

No West?

Gone

there goes Texas-