Saturday, August 16. Vicenza
This morning we caught the vaporetto to Ferrovia (train station) for a day trip to Vicenza. Vicenza is a city of the Veneto about 60 km from Venice. On arrival, we were immediately aware of how different the air was. Not salty. Not rotting.
Vicenza is known for the work of the famous architect, Andrea Palladio (1508-1580). He was born in Padua and moved to Vicenza when he was 16 to apprentice to a stonecutter. He designed many buildings in Vicenza.
We started at the Teatro Olimpico. There Palladio is said to have designed a stage set, although it was not built until much later. It is seven streets of Thebes for perfomng Oedipus Rex. It's claim to fame is the way it uses perspective to show several fairly long streets in several directions. It was interesting but seemed quite inflexible and only really visible from straight on.
Good porchetta pizza for lunch.
We tried the museums. Of course, the most interesting sounding ones were closed and the most interesting floor of another was closed.
We got to see the terrace and loggia of the Palladian Basilica, a municipal administration building (not a church) in this instance. But the show piece great hall was closed (for the installation of a exhibit on futbol).
We visited the Tempio di Santa Corona to see Giovanni Bellini's Baptism of Christ. Why it is called tempio (temple), we have not found; it is a church.
We stopped by the Cathedral of S. Mary Annunciata. The altar was beautiful.
A stonework detail:
August 17, Sunday
We are becoming more acquainted with Carlo Scarpa. You may recall his name from the Olivetti store we visited shortly after we arrived in Venice (July 24).
Today, we went to the Fondazione Querini Stampalia to see an exhibit on Scarpa in conjunction with the Biennale. The exhibit was not so exciting, but we found that, in the early 60s, Carlo Scarpa was commissioned to redesign the ground floor and make other moderninzing modifications. He embraced the high water and integrated the tidal pattern with very horizontal fountains in the garden and brought the water into the building. The result is very successful and should be better known.
The Palazzo has a permanent art collection, mostly not to our liking. It included many interesting, but poor quality paintings of events and routines of Venetian life just before the end of the Republic in 1797. Also this renowned Presentation at the Temple by Giovanni Bellini:
The men on the right are probably Giovanni and Andrea Montegna:
Lunch was sandwiches from the Museum. Wine and cheese in for dinner.
Aug. 18. Monday
Went to see a new Museum, the Pinotececa Manfrediana. It’s collection is comprised of works donated by marquis Federico Manfredini to the Patriarchal Seminary near the Salute in 1839. The Seminary has converted a chapel and a couple of rooms into pretty nice gallery space. The new lighting was angled too close to the picture planes, eliminating reflections but interfering with the viewing more directly. The collection ranged mostly from poor to mediocre, with maybe 4 exceptions. No photos.
We then went to San Marco again, spending our time with the Pala d’Oro, a famous altarpiece. The oldest parts date back to 1102. Its current form was finalized in the 15th century.
And the mosaics in general.
Spotted in a shop window, a very tacky souvenir:
Our closest church, San Stephano, has a roof structure similar to that of the chapel in Padua.
Back to St Stefano for dinner (angler fish, salad, veal al limone, amaretti mousse).
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