Robert Adam was born in Kirkcaldy, Fife in 1728. Often considered Scotland's most famous architect, Adam became a leader of classical revival in England for both architecture and interior decoration. His designs are particularly notable for their lavish use of color.
Robert Adam was an eclectic who depended as much on good business sense as on his personal design innovations. His designs incorporated light, color, and detailed ornamentation. To generate his style he adapted motifs from classical antiquity, Italian, French and Renaissance influences and abstracted them into a personal style.
Adam's most unusual designs were based on Etruscan vase decorations. The Etruscan Dressing Room at Osterley Park, Middlesex (1775-1776) is the only substantial survivor of eight such designs.

Adam died in London in 1792.