MODERN ARCHITECTURE I

The course focuses on the architecture of the Italian Renaissance with special emphasis on the theme of the centralized church.

Students will gain an understanding of architecture and of the relationship between architecture and society in the Renaissance. They will be introduced to methods in the investigation and intepretation of architecture, and in the analysis of documents and sources.

At the end of the course the student should have a broad knowledge of a major chapter in the architectural history of Europe and to have acquired the tools for the investigation of other case-studies.

The course is comprised within the majors of the Modern and Contemporary tracks or curricula of the degree in History of Art and Conservation of Artistic Heritage.

1. Knowledge and understanding:
- Demonstrate an understanding of Italian Renaissance architecture, with a special emphasis on the centralised church
- Demonstrate knowledge of the sources related to the topic
- Demonstrate a firm grounding in the language of the discipline.
2. Skills:
- Students must be able to analyse the ecclesiastical architecture of the Italian Renaissance.
- Students must demonstrate a correct use of the language of the discipline in all its practical applications
3. Critical judgement:
- Students must be able to formulate and logically structure arguments, developing a critical approach to the themes and questions discussed in class.
4.Communication skills:
- Students must be able to communicate ideas associated with specific themes and issues of art historical and architectural-historical investigation, using appropriate terminology.
- Students must be able to logically and coherently organize their thoughts on themes touched upon by this course.
- Students must be able to interact with one another and with the supervisor in an appropriate and respectful way, in class and via the digital platform.
5. Learning skills:
- Students must be able to consult and critically use the bibliography provided througout the course.

This course presumes previous knowledge of the basic thresholds in the history of Modern architecture, studied during the first three-year degree.

The rise of the centrally planned church is a fundamental theme in the history of Italian Renaissance architecture and this course will consider the reasons for its rise in popularity. The course traces the history of the form from its Renaissance origins in the 1430s to the end of the sixteenth century and it asks whether the form was inspired by aesthetic, religious, iconographic or ideological considerations. In analysing the functions of these churches, which were often pilgrimage churches, the course deals with various devotional ideas that were often of significance in the choice of this plan type.

This is a basic bibliography, further readings will be given at the beginning of the course:
R. Wittkower, Architectural Principles in the Age of Humanism, (various editions)
S. Sinding Larsen, ‘Some functional and iconological aspects of the centralized church in the Italian Renaissance, Acta ad Archaeologiam et Artium Historiam Pertinentia, 2, 1965, pp. 203-252.
P. Davies, ‘The Madonna delle Carceri in Prato and Italian Renaissance pilgrimage architecture’, Architectural History, 36, 1993, pp. 1-18.
B. Adorni, ed., La chiesa a pianta centrale. Tempio civico del rinascimento, Milan 2002.
J. Niebaum, Der kirchliche Zentralbau der Renaissance in Italien, Studien zur Karriere eines Baugedenkens im Quattro-und frühen Cinquecento, 2 vols, Munich 2016.

For general information about Italian Renaissance architecture see the following:
F. P. Fiore ed., Storia dell’architettura italiana. Il Quattrocento, Milan 1998.
A. Bruschi ed., Storia dell’architettura italiana. Il primo Cinquecento, Milan 2002.
C. Conforti and R. Tuttle eds, Storia dell’architettura italiana. Il secondo Cinquecento, Milan 2001

Oral exam. During the exam the student must demonstrate an in-depht knowledge of the themes and aspects touched upon in class and be able to command the appropriate language to discuss about them.

Lctures by the teacher. Students will be asked to discuss readings prepared at home. Power-point presentations of the lectures and readings for the discussion in class will be find in moodle.unive.it

Italian

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