Palazzo Medici

Question 1

function?

Answer 1

The Villa Urbana for the Medici family.

Question 2

composition?

Answer 2

Three storeys separated by horizontal bands.

Question 3

Piantereno?

Answer 3

In rusticated pietraforte stone.

Question 4

Piano Nobile and attic storey?

Answer 4

Brick covered in stucco imitating Ashlar masonry.

Question 5

Bifora windows?

Answer 5

Articulated with Ionic colonettes on the piano nobile.
Articulated with Corinthian colonettes on the attic storey.
Demonstrates the hierarchy of orders (Vasari).

Question 6

Projecting dentilled cornice?

Answer 6

Creates an imposing façade.

Question 7

Courtyard of columns?

Answer 7

Central courtyard displays composite capitals supporting Roman arches. Texture is introduced through the use of sgraffito in the entablature, and relief sculptures from the Medici collection.

Question 8

Medici Palle?

Answer 8

Medici coat of arms can be seen on the corner of the building as well as in the inner courtyard.

Question 9

Respite from city?

Answer 9

Used as a retreat from the busy an unsanitary streets of Renaissance Florence, providing a space for the Medici family to relax and escape the bustling city.

Question 10

Influence of the Renaissance style?

Answer 10

The symmetry, regular proportion and emphasis on geometry demonstrates the influence of the Renaissance style.

Question 11

Renewed interest in classical architecture

Answer 11

Brunelleschi had revived the Classical style of architecture in Florence. Particularly seen in the rusticated masonry, classical orders, projecting cornince and Roman arches. Florentine humanists thought that geometric principles could unlock the mysteries of the universe and reveal the intentions of God – seen here in the emphasis on proportion, balance and symmetry.

Question 11

Cosimo de Medici?

Answer 11

Cosimo de Medici had recently been granted more governmental power after the defeat of the Milanese (1437) and commissioned a new palazzo to reflect this.

Question 11

Palazzo as an expression of Medici wealth and piety?

Answer 11

The stone roundels in the courtyard are decorated with the Medici palle, and relief sculptures of Classical sculpture, parading the Medici family heritage and their Classical education.

Question 11

Palazzo as a defensive structure?

Answer 11

The fortress-like appearance of the building is achieved through the use of rusticated stone, projecting stone cornice, and the decreasing size of the storeys which creates the illusion of an even larger building.

Question 12

Palazzo as a humanist retreat?

Answer 12

The courtyard provided Humanist guests with a large open-air quarter for intellectual debate. The Medici’s guests would have recognised classical architectural elements from reading Vitruvius and Alberti.

Question 12

Sumptuary laws?

Answer 12

These laws attempted to curb people’s expenditure and prevent families like the Medici from claiming too much authority over the Republic. Cosimo overcame these laws by building simpler and modest exterior, with a more lavish interior.

Question 13

Medici status in Florence?

Answer 13

Quattrocento Florence was a republic ruled by a council of leading families. At this time, the Medici had become the de facto rulers of Florence. The Palazzo Medici reflected the power of the family and asserted their authority over their rivals.

Question 14

Influence of Alberti/Vitruvius?

Answer 14

Vitruvius’s De Architectura (a classical guide for building projects) was rediscovered in 1414. Renaissance architect Alberti revived these classical principles of architecture in his treatise De Architectura (1450).

Question 15

Brunelleschi?

Answer 15

Brunelleschi had proposed a grandiose design to Cosimo but it was rejected for Michelozzo’s more modest plan,as Cosimo was careful to comply with Florentine Republican values.

Question 16

Pietraforte stone?

Answer 16

Yellow sandstone commonly used in Florentine Renaissance architecture

Question 17

Use of rustication / ashlar?

Answer 17

Intended to accentuate the structure of the building through the different grading of masonry,rusticatedblocks on the ground floor, theashlarface of the top story, and thecornice. Rusticated masonry was also a sign of Medici wealtth as it was costly and rare.

Question 18

Florentine architecture?

Answer 18

Florentine architecture reflected a more austere classicism than Roman or Venetian architecture due to the city’s Republican values. Florence’s leading families competed for power, and so Palazzo’s tended to be defensive and imposing in nature in order to deter any enemies.