Hosted by the Southeast Chapter
Brothers Danielle and Marcantonio Barbaro were quintessential patrons of Andrea Palladio’s, representing the duality of highly cultured Venetian aristocrat and gentleman farmer alike. The design for the villa at Maser by Palladio epitomized this double life, merging the archetype of functional farm and richly appointed Terra Firma residence in one. Though historians have pointed to the villa’s uncharacteristic use of overly ornate mannerisms compared to Palladio’s more typical stripped version of ancient Rome, Villa Barbaro remains highly popular among his villa oeuvre, and is conceptually consistent with other working farmhouse villas like Villa Emo and Badoer.
Palladio’s design for what became known as the Tempietto – a Greek cross plan superimposed onto a cylinder – was commissioned directly by Marcantonio Barbaro to serve the community of Maser as well as the adjacent villa. Purported to have actually died at Maser in 1580, presumably while planning the church, Palladio did not live to see it built. Of all his religious commissions the Tempietto pays closest homage in both spirit and geometry to Palladio’s revered ancient Roman precedent – the Pantheon.
Taken together the villa and church at Maser represent the full span of Palladio’s mature work. And while both designs stray somewhat from his purest expressions of geometric and proportional purity, they nonetheless demonstrate functionally expressive solutions for a pair of highly cultured clients.
~The Process~
Reference images will be provided each Wednesday for the selected building. Sketch during the week or over the weekend.
Use any media or technique of your choice. Have fun and experiment. All are welcome to participate, especially children and students of any age.
Forward a JPG file of your sketch to [email protected] by Monday noon following the sketch date and we will post to the ICAA Southeast Instagram account on Monday afternoon. Please include your Instagram handle in order to tag your sketch.
Post to your own Instagram account using #icaasoutheast #graphiteandgrits #connectingthroughsketching #classicalarchitecture