The course offers an “interpretation” of past architectural works, providing tools to analyze them, understand their historical context, and evaluate their qualities. To this end, the selected architectural works will be examined, encouraging students to ask why they were built at a specific time and place, what the objectives of the client, the builder, and the architect were, how and why certain techniques and specific materials were chosen, what relationships these works have with the architecture of the past and with that of their own time, and finally, how these overall aspects relate to one another by reconstructing the design process, when it is sufficiently documented. In the first year, the buildings considered most significant are examined, spanning the period from the Classical Age to the 16th century.
teacher profile teaching materials
The course aims to provide analytical and interpretative frameworks for studying the history of architecture in Italy and the Mediterranean region, from ancient Rome to the end of the sixteenth century. It includes in-depth historical and critical examinations of buildings, cities, architects, patrons, materials, and building techniques, design tools and graphic conventions used throughout time.
PART 1: ANTIQUITY (3RD CENT. B.C.–7TH CENT. A.D.)
Roman, Late Antique, and Early Christian architecture.
The Roman art of building from the monarchy to the late empire: concrete and cast vaults; processes of standardization in building production; territorial infrastructures and the anthropization of the landscape; the great Republican sanctuaries of Lazio; the architectural orders and Vitruvius’ De architectura.
Rome and Roman cities in the Republican age; the topography of Rome in the age of Augustus and the fourteen regiones of the Urbs; the great imperial building sites of Rome and the Severan Forma Urbis Romae; the expansion of cities in the imperial and late imperial age and the great metropolises of the Mediterranean.
PART 2: MIDDLE AGES (8TH–14TH CENT.)
Early Christian, and Late Antique architecture in the Mediterranean from Constantine to Justinian; the four Christian capitals: Rome, Milan, Constantinople, and Ravenna.
Early Medieval, Romanesque, and Gothic architecture.
Lombard architecture, the Carolingian “renaissance,” and the idea of Rome.
Characteristics, functions, spaces, and models of Romanesque architecture between feudal sovereignty and the free communes; materials, techniques, and construction systems of the Romanesque: the round arch, load-bearing wall, and groin vault; the circulation of Romanesque craftsmen and the guilds of arts and crafts; Romanesque architecture between pilgrimages and crusades.
Characteristics, functions, spaces, and models of Gothic architecture and the poetics of light; materials, techniques, and construction systems of the Gothic: the pointed arch, clustered pier, rib vault, bay with groin vaults, flying buttress, and stained-glass windows; the origins of Italian architecture and the great building sites of the Italian Gothic; spaces and functions of the Italian medieval city between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.
PART 3: RENAISSANCE (15TH–16TH CENT.)
Renaissance Architecture.
Princes, cities, and architects of the fifteenth century; humanism and the memory of antiquity in fifteenth-century Italy; Filippo Brunelleschi and Leon Battista Alberti; the origins of the modern architectural treatise; the emergence of the modern concept of architectural design and the role of drawings and models; fifteenth-century architecture in Florence, Rome, and across Italy.
Princes, cities, and architects of the sixteenth century; the role of architecture in the Italian Renaissance courts of the sixteenth century; Donato Bramante and Raffaello Sanzio; the patronage of Pope Julius II; the patronage of the Medici popes, Pope Leo X and Pope Clement VII; the architecture of Michelangelo Buonarroti and Antonio da Sangallo the Younger; the architecture of Baldassarre Peruzzi and Giulio Romano; the architecture of Andrea Palladio in the Veneto and Venice.
Richard Krautheimer, Three Christian Capitals. Topography and Politics, California Univ. Press, 1983.
Without a basic knowledge of the history of architecture and art related to the periods covered in the lessons, it is strongly recommended to read manuals and textbook on the history of art and architecture in English:
David Watkin, A History of Western Architecture, London, Lawrence King Publ. Ltd., 20156 or previous editions.
Fruizione: 21001993 STORIA DELL'ARCHITETTURA 1 in Scienze dell'architettura L-17 R CANALE II MUSSOLIN MAURO
Programme
COURSE OUTLINEThe course aims to provide analytical and interpretative frameworks for studying the history of architecture in Italy and the Mediterranean region, from ancient Rome to the end of the sixteenth century. It includes in-depth historical and critical examinations of buildings, cities, architects, patrons, materials, and building techniques, design tools and graphic conventions used throughout time.
PART 1: ANTIQUITY (3RD CENT. B.C.–7TH CENT. A.D.)
Roman, Late Antique, and Early Christian architecture.
The Roman art of building from the monarchy to the late empire: concrete and cast vaults; processes of standardization in building production; territorial infrastructures and the anthropization of the landscape; the great Republican sanctuaries of Lazio; the architectural orders and Vitruvius’ De architectura.
Rome and Roman cities in the Republican age; the topography of Rome in the age of Augustus and the fourteen regiones of the Urbs; the great imperial building sites of Rome and the Severan Forma Urbis Romae; the expansion of cities in the imperial and late imperial age and the great metropolises of the Mediterranean.
PART 2: MIDDLE AGES (8TH–14TH CENT.)
Early Christian, and Late Antique architecture in the Mediterranean from Constantine to Justinian; the four Christian capitals: Rome, Milan, Constantinople, and Ravenna.
Early Medieval, Romanesque, and Gothic architecture.
Lombard architecture, the Carolingian “renaissance,” and the idea of Rome.
Characteristics, functions, spaces, and models of Romanesque architecture between feudal sovereignty and the free communes; materials, techniques, and construction systems of the Romanesque: the round arch, load-bearing wall, and groin vault; the circulation of Romanesque craftsmen and the guilds of arts and crafts; Romanesque architecture between pilgrimages and crusades.
Characteristics, functions, spaces, and models of Gothic architecture and the poetics of light; materials, techniques, and construction systems of the Gothic: the pointed arch, clustered pier, rib vault, bay with groin vaults, flying buttress, and stained-glass windows; the origins of Italian architecture and the great building sites of the Italian Gothic; spaces and functions of the Italian medieval city between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.
PART 3: RENAISSANCE (15TH–16TH CENT.)
Renaissance Architecture.
Princes, cities, and architects of the fifteenth century; humanism and the memory of antiquity in fifteenth-century Italy; Filippo Brunelleschi and Leon Battista Alberti; the origins of the modern architectural treatise; the emergence of the modern concept of architectural design and the role of drawings and models; fifteenth-century architecture in Florence, Rome, and across Italy.
Princes, cities, and architects of the sixteenth century; the role of architecture in the Italian Renaissance courts of the sixteenth century; Donato Bramante and Raffaello Sanzio; the patronage of Pope Julius II; the patronage of the Medici popes, Pope Leo X and Pope Clement VII; the architecture of Michelangelo Buonarroti and Antonio da Sangallo the Younger; the architecture of Baldassarre Peruzzi and Giulio Romano; the architecture of Andrea Palladio in the Veneto and Venice.
Core Documentation
Paul Zanker, La città romana, 2013.Richard Krautheimer, Three Christian Capitals. Topography and Politics, California Univ. Press, 1983.
Without a basic knowledge of the history of architecture and art related to the periods covered in the lessons, it is strongly recommended to read manuals and textbook on the history of art and architecture in English:
David Watkin, A History of Western Architecture, London, Lawrence King Publ. Ltd., 20156 or previous editions.
Attendance
ATTENDANCE POLICY Attendance is mandatory for at least 75% of the classes, including both traditional in-class teaching activities and on-site sessions, as well as seminar activities, in accordance with academic regulations. Students who may have difficulty attending classes due to work commitments must inform the instructor by the end of October and agree on additional reading materials. Requests can be made in person or via email; in the latter case, it is crucial to ensure that a response from the instructor has been received.Type of evaluation
EVALUATION METHOD AND GRADING POLICY The final grade (expressed on a scale of 30/30 with honors) takes into account the grade obtained in the optional midterm examination. The determination of the final grade will consider the use of appropriate technical vocabulary, the quality of learning, autonomy of judgment, and the coherence and logical strength of arguments. Furthermore, the achievement of the course’s specific learning outcomes will significantly contribute to a fully positive evaluation and to improving the final grade, in particular through the following aspects: ability to analyze architectural artifacts within their urban and territorial contexts; knowledge of construction techniques and the use of materials in relation to different geographical and historical contexts; understanding of the nature of space, the features of territory, and the construction of landscape over time; ability to critically engage with sources and bibliography, problematizing definitions, concepts, and reference categories; understanding of drawing conventions and tools of architectural communication in relation to different cultures and historical periods. MIDTERM (optional) At the end of the first teaching module, an optional midterm examination is scheduled. It consists of an oral examination lasting approximately 15 minutes, including two questions based on the general syllabus (lectures, site visits, PowerPoint presentations, required readings listed in the bibliography, and any supplementary teaching materials), a redrawing of a building (from an assigned list), and an image identification (from PowerPoint presentations). Only in exceptional cases will additional questions be allowed, when necessary for a more precise assessment. The result of the midterm examination is expressed using four grades: A (excellent), B (good), C (satisfactory), D (unsatisfactory), which may be qualified with “+” or “–”. Students who pass the optional midterm examination with a grade of C (satisfactory) or higher will be assessed in the final examination only on MODULE 2: THE MIDDLE AGES and MODULE 3: THE RENAISSANCE. Failure to pass this examination, or not taking it, entails a final examination covering the entire course syllabus. FINAL At the end of the course, a final oral examination lasting between 25 and 35 minutes is scheduled. It consists of five questions structured as follows: two questions based on the general syllabus (lectures, site visits, PowerPoint presentations, compulsory readings listed in the bibliography, and any supplementary teaching materials), one question on the compulsory readings (selected from those listed in the bibliography), a redrawing of a building (from an assigned list), and image identification (from PowerPoint presentations). Each question is graded from 1 to 6 points; therefore, the passing threshold is a total score of at least 18/30. Unanswered questions receive a score of zero. In this case as well, only in exceptional circumstances will additional questions be allowed, when necessary for a more precise assessment.