Posted by: Bob Witman, journalist & writer on architecture, 4 jan 2010
My idea of the perfect holiday is a combination of moving around by car and seeing nice landscapes and beautiful architecture. The mini-Palladio tour in the north of Italy is my all time favorite. I’ve done it a number of times and nothing is better then cruising through the Veneto countryside, passing sleepy villages and let yourself suprise by this beautiful villas from the 16e century of the architect Andrea Palladio.
Palladio built between 30 to 40 villas and townpalaces in his life :1508-1580. Most of them in Vincenza and direct surroundings. Some of then are really hard to find, others are placed simply in the heart of the village, or next to the main road. A few villa’s are carefully restructured. Others are in decay, or closed up for years because the lack of money for maintenance. A lot of the countryhouses are private property. Only a few, like Villa Rotonda and Villa Emo, are exploited as sightseeing objects.
What makes them special, is the very careful way Palladio designed these houses. He is the godfather of the classical style, which has been an example in the whole western world. Including the USA, where president Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) was a big fan of Palladio. His style in which he used element of Roman temples, is often used for government buildings like courts, parlements en cityhalls. The most famous examples in de States being the Capitol in Washington and Jeffersons own house Monticello, which is said to be inspired on Palladio’s famous Villa Rotonda.
The villadesign was intended to express the status of the client, but should also serve very practical farming purposes. The citybuildings that Palladio designed were a lot more about representation. Almost all of them are in Vincenza itself, including the famous Theater Olimpico and Basilica on the main square.
If you want to visit Palladio, Vincenza is the town you should go to. If you fly to Verona, it’s a one hour drive. Milan is two hours away. You can check in a hotel in Vincenza and take daytrips from over there to the countryside. You absolutely are in need of a car and a good map. If you work on a tight schedule, you can do seven villa’s a day, mind you that just a few of them are open to look at the interior. The problem with Palladio’s villas are the very irregular opening hours. Some of the villas are not open at all, some only after appointment. Most of them open up only a few hours a week, especially in the winter. So the hardest part is planning the trip. Prepare yourself for that, to prevent disappointment. Check with the touristoffice for routes and visitingtimes. A good guide is a necessity: try the one from Electa. But there are more available.
Highlights:
Villa Rotonda, just outside Vincenza, take a bus, car of bike to the south of the city, near the river Berica. Rotanda is Palladio’s most famous villadesign, a total symmetrical building, dedicated to the idea of the divinia proportio, the Golden Ratio. Visiting the inside is a must.
Villa Emo. Fanzolo di Vedelago, take a good map, 1:500.000, Italians roadsigns are what you expect them to be: unreliable. The reward is worth it. A beautiful site, beautiful interior.
Villa Barbaro. Maser. Upper north of Vincenza, with Rotonda one of the most visited villas. Also due to the painting of Paolo Veronese. Splendid position in between the hills. Fairly accescible.
Villa Cornaro. Piombino Dese, downtown. His best architecture, with a double loggia on front and back. Drink something in the bar opposite to the villa and ask if you are allowed to walk around in the garden (tip him!). Interior closed most of the time, but the outside makes its worthwhile. The owner is American!
Villa Foscari: Famous house near Venice, a townhouse outside town, next to the Brenta canal. The house is just great, in the interior some of the paintings had been damaged. But there is still enough to admire.
Villa Pojana. Pojana Maggiore, south of Vincenza. Re fixed in a nice way. Interesting wallpaintings, nice proportions. Special front with occio’s, holes, in the portico, to emphasize the militairy past of the client. Fairly accessible.
Villa Badoer: Fratta Polinese, south of Vincenza. Beautiful placed near the river in a small village. Simple but very very well proportioned. Wide wings for farming purposes.
Also worthwhile: Villa Pisani, Montagna. Bad state, but nice trip to a very nice village. Villa Caldogno, Caldogno, paintings of giants. Villa Pisani (2), Bagnolo di Lonigo, nice early work, only to visited after appointment. Villa Godi, one of his firsts, situated on a hillside.
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