Biography Of Andrea Palladio

Palladian Architecture Andrea Palladio, who was originally named Andrea di Pietro della Gondola is considered to be the greatest architect of northern Italy during the 16th-century. Palladio was born November 30, 1508 in Padua, Republic of Venice and passed away August of 1580 in Vicenza. During his time, this Italian architect was influenced greatly by Roman and Greek architecture which led him to design both palaces and villas, the most notable villa being Villa Rotonda. Palladio’s architecture influenced the minds of other designers and was used in modeling a villa found on the outskirts of London, the Chiswick House. Located just on the outskirts of Vicenza lies Palladio’s best-known country house, the Villa Rotonda. Around 1570 the

The commissioner, Monsignor Paolo Almerico, was a retired official of the papal court who wanted to reside in the countryside of his hometown of Vicenza, in this soon to be built villa, for the last period of his life. In addition, Paolo America was in request for a palace where he could entertain his fellow Vencentines. Within the book, The Villa Form and Ideology of Country Houses, James Ackerman explains what Palladio believes the villa had to offer to Paolo Almerico and his guests, “ The site is one of the most pleasant and delightful that one could find because it is at the top of a little hill with an easy ascent and is bathed on one side by the Bacchiglione, a navigable river, and on the other is surrounded by other most agreeable hills which give the aspect of a great theatre: and all are cultivated and abound in most excellent fruits and the best vines. Thus, because it enjoys beautiful views on every side, some of which are limited, others more distant, and still others that reach the horizon, loggias have been made on all four sides.” Being a majestic villa of its own, Villa Rotonda has become one of the most recognizable villas of the Renaissance. Villa Rotonda is a perfect example of

Similarly to Villa Rotonda, the function of the Chiswick villa was to provide a place for entertainment, thought, study and a somewhere where one can sit back and relax. The Chiswick villa was also built with a central cubic building and a hemispherical dome but differed in the construction and design of the facades. Unlike Villa Rotonda, Chiswick villa was built with one portico on the entrance facade. The other facades were independent designs of their own. The rear facade depicted three venetian windows, which came from drawings by Palladio. Circulation around the building was discouraged by gardens and on each side of the four facades were extended freestanding walls to help reinforce the impression. The main entrance facade had fluted columns which were taken directly from Palladio’s drawings, found in the Quattro libri. A double-ramped stairway was designed that led to the portico and the basement represented a style of vermiculation. Vermiculation is a form of surface rustication shown as carvings or finishings in building stones. These carvings or finishings are irregular grooves which resemble worm tracks. Burlington used this vermiculated work to create a decorative contrast on the lowest story of the villa, that being the basement. Burlington chose to construct the cupola drum in the shape of an octagon rather than