Architectural Styles & Magenta Zone Flashcards
(19 cards)
What are the 4 main architectural styles during the Medieval and Renaissance periods in Italy?
Early Christian, Romanesque, Gothic, and Renaissance
Early Christian (Paleocristiano)
grew out of Late Roman and Byzantine architecture, in Rome, Christian, or Christianized basilicas built under the Late Roman empire . Produced from the earliest period of Christianity to the end of the Western roman Empire (4th-5th century AD)
Uses the same artistic media as the surrounding Pagan Roman culture
Uses late Roman styles, adapting Roman forms and motifs and giving new meanings to what had been pagan symbols
Early Christian example in Milan
Example in Milan: Basilica of S. Lorenzo: originally built in 364-402 AD, includes Renaissance and Baroque renovations
Romanesque (Romanico)
first truly medieval style, dominated Medieval Europe from late 10th century to the 12th century. First distinctive new style to spread across Europe since the end of the Roman Empire, it is associated with the Roman invasion (1066)
Massive quality: thick walls, sturdy pillars, large towers, and round arches
Clearly defined forms, frequently of very regular and symmetrical (Romanesque means “in the Roman manner”)
Originally developed in Northern Italy, France, and Iberian Peninsula in the 10th century, spreads over europe through the influence of the monks from the Abbey of Cluny (France)
Romanesque in Milan
Basilica of S. Ambrosio: built from 379-386 in Early Christian style, renovated and remade in the Romanesque style from 1080-1140
Gothic (Gotico)
emerged during the late medieval period from the 12th century. Evolved from, and often mixes up with, Romanesque architecture. Originated in France (Opus Francigenum, “French work” - the term “gothic” only appears in the late Renaissance). In Northern Europe, it lasted into the 16th century.
Pointed arch, ribbed vault, flying buttress, and stained glass windows
Solid walls penetrated by small openings are replaced by a style where light appears to triumph over substance, this is the style of many great cathedrals, abbeys, and churches of Northern and Central Europe. It os also seen in castles, palaces, town halls, guild halls, universities
Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris
Gothic example in Milan
Only example of pure gothic in Italy is the Duomo of Milan,
The Duomo: built from 1386-1858
Renaissance
Ancient greek and roman culture who sought to revive the order of a past “golden age”, coincided with the general revival of learning in Europe
Emphasis on symmetry, proportion, geometry, and the regularity of parts, whose universal and permanent value is shown in the ancient Roman and Greek architecture
Orderly arrangements of columns and the use of semicircular arches, hemispherical domes, niches and aedicules replace the more complex plans and the irregular profiles of medieval buildings
Key example: S. Maria da Fiore in Florence, Duomo di Florence
Renaissance was first developed in Florence in the 15th century and quickly spread over to other Italian cities
Renaissance in Milan
S. Maria delle Grazie: built from 1463-1497 funded by the duke Ludovico (il Moro) Sforza
Movement of cultural innovations
Cultural innovations tend to move and there are areas of diffusion, can reference revivalist styles that gave a second life to most of the styles
Can mention baroque style, value of neo-medieval architecture, middle ages were the time when nations emerged from the platform of the roman empire, emerging in own identity
The Magenta Area
The south-western portion of the historical walled city south of the castle was originally named after the Porta Vercellina
In 1860, the Porta Vercellina gate of the Bastions was renamed Porta Magenta after a Risorgimento battle against the Austrians (1859)
Monasteries and gardens
During the middle ages, monasteries were built around or in place of the Early Christian churches which has arisen in proximity of the old cemeterial areas
Seven of them are documented by written sources
All monasteries had to include vegetable gardens and vineyards, which contributed to make this suburban area more silent and greener than other areas of the city center
Up to the late 1700s, the high density of gardens and cultivated fields combined with the high concentration of springs and streams to preserve the area with a rural and quiet character
The castle
Between 1350 and 1500 the building of the castle and the making of the barcho (park) prevented the further expansion of the city towards North-West - and contributed to freeze the original tracts of the Porta Vercellina area
Borgo delle Grazie
Duke Ludovico il Moro (1480-1499) planned to remake Milan as a Renaissance capital
A new center should rise between his court in the Castle and a Borgo delle grazie developed around the newly built church
Tuscan architects and artists like Bramante and Leonardo da Vinci were committed to work there
Monasteries to barracks
After the Sforza’s fall, under Spanish, French, and Austrian rule (1525-1859), the castle became the site of foreign garrisons
After 1770, the monasteries of the area were turned into barracks or military hospitals
The shift from religious to military functions preserved the “quiet” and green character of the area and prevented its full urbanization
A residential area in modern bourgeois Milan
After Unification (1859-1861), a municipality’s plan to renovate the area around the castle led to the construction of the Foro Bonaparte, the Parco Sempione, and a new residential area for the upper-middle class (1890-1900)
The memory of the old Sforza district was preserved by naming the new streets after Renaissance painters and artists and the use of Neo-Renaissance architectural style for several of the new building
A new cultural vocation
After the barracks and other military functions were moved away from the city between the 1920s and 1950s, some monasteries in the area were transformed to public museums or academic institutions
From Renaissance art to modern fashion and industrial design
During the 1980s and 1990s, the Corso Magenta area became the first hub of Milan’s new fashion industry
Since 2015, a local trade and resident association has promoted the area as one of the districts of the annual Milan Design week, an international industrial design festival
The Casa degli Atellani/Vigna di Leonardo
Next to the Basilica di santa Maria delle grazie and the Last Supper fresco, it is one of the few surviving Renaissance private houses in Milan
Re-launched in 2015 as a museum, based on the discovery that Leonardo’s personal vineyard laid within the home’s courtyard
