Bartolomeo and Giovanni Buon, Ca’ d’Oro, 1428-30 Flashcards
(30 cards)
What is the title, date, and location of Ca’ d’Oro?
Ca’ d’Oro (“House of Gold”), built 1421–1437, located on the Grand Canal, Venice.
Who were the architects and main artists involved in Ca’ d’Oro?
Giovanni and Bartolomeo Bon (architects), Matteo Raverti (sculptor), Zuan di Franza (painter).
Who was the patron of Ca’ d’Oro and what was his background?
Marino Contarini, from a patrician family with multiple doges – aimed to assert family prestige.
What type of building is Ca’ d’Oro?
A casa-fondaco – combined residential and commercial function.
How did the patronage reflect Contarini’s aims?
To display wealth, lineage, and power; a statement of identity and dynastic pride.
How does Ca’ d’Oro relate to Venice’s civic values?
It contradicted the myth of civic equality by emphasising elite extravagance.
Why is its location significant?
On the Grand Canal – maximum visibility for projecting status and civic identity.
What materials were used in Ca’ d’Oro and why?
Istrian stone (resists salt), brick (lightweight), marble, gilding, ultramarine – all luxurious and symbolic.
Describe the layout of Ca’ d’Oro.
C-shaped with an androne (hall), staircases, courtyard, and double piano nobile with loggias.
How was the building supported structurally?
Built on wooden piles (Istrian pine) – standard for Venice’s watery terrain.
What were the key surface effects and materials used for illusion?
Gilding, oil-painted marble, white lead, ultramarine – created visual richness and illusionism.
What decorative style dominates the façade?
Venetian Gothic – pointed arches, ogees, tracery, colonnettes, cresting.
What is the symbolic function of the open loggia?
Creates transparency, invites spectacle, and merges private/public identity.
What pigments and materials signify wealth and prestige?
Ultramarine (18 ducats/lb), gold leaf, red marble – signifiers of elite status.
Who produced the tracery and sculptural detail?
Matteo Raverti – created intricate dogtooth mouldings, porphyry spheres, etc.
What visual techniques align Ca’ d’Oro with Renaissance illusionism?
Painted faux-marble, use of oiled pigments for sheen, emphasis on light play.
What is a casa-fondaco and why is it significant?
Mixed residential-commercial Venetian building – reflects mercantile and aristocratic blend.
How does Ca’ d’Oro differ from a traditional Renaissance palazzo?
Asymmetrical, open façade with Gothic structure – but shared values of prestige and civic grandeur.
How is the building designed for civic performance?
Loggias and water-facing design invite public engagement – architecture as spectacle.
In what ways is Ca’ d’Oro a transitional building between Gothic and Renaissance?
Gothic in form, but Renaissance in ambition, patronal pride, use of illusion, and urban function.
What Renaissance ideals are reflected in Ca’ d’Oro’s design?
Humanism, civic identity, individual expression, artistic illusionism, and luxury materials.
How does it relate to the Renaissance concept of mythic Venice?
Merges earth, water, air, and fire in its beauty – represents Venice as a divine city.
What does Loren Partridge say about Ca’ d’Oro and Venetian façades?
“A glistening, kaleidoscopic, ever-shifting illusion… another manifestation of the Myth of Venice.”
Why is Partridge’s quote useful in a conclusion?
Links material richness, illusion, and civic identity – all core to Renaissance visual culture.
