Italian Neoclassical architecture refers to architecture in Italy during the Neoclassical period (1750s–1850s).

History and influences

In the 1750s and 1760s, the rich and frivolous

Rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

was going out of fashion, and there was a growing desire to return to the simple, yet elegant classicism of architecture in

Ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...

Ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–50 ...

and to a lesser extent

Renaissance architecture Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought ...

. In its purest form it is this new style principally derived from the architecture of

Classical Greece Classical Greece was a period of around 200 years (the 5th and 4th centuries BC) in Ancient Greece,The "Classical Age" is "the modern designation of the period from about 500 B.C. to the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C." (Thomas R. Martin ...

and the architecture of Pompeii and

Herculaneum Herculaneum (; Neapolitan and it, Ercolano) was an ancient town, located in the modern-day ''comune'' of Ercolano, Campania, Italy. Herculaneum was buried under volcanic ash and pumice in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Like the ...

. Since it was widely based on

Classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aestheti ...

, the movement was named ''Neo''-Classicism. Neoclassical did not particularly evolve in any particular nation, but the founders were

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

. Everything from villas, palaces, gardens, interiors and art began to be based on Roman and Greek themes.

Buildings and edifices

Before the discoveries of the lost cities of Pompeii and

, buildings were themed on

and

Classical Athens The city of Athens ( grc, Ἀθῆναι, ''Athênai'' .tʰɛ̂ː.nai̯ Modern Greek: Αθήναι, ''Athine'' or, more commonly and in singular, Αθήνα, ''Athina'' .'θi.na during the classical period of ancient Greece (480–323 BC) wa ...

, but were later inspired by these archaeological sites.Cartage.org.lb
Examples of Neoclassical architecture in Italy includen the

Royal Palace of Caserta The Royal Palace of Caserta ( it, Reggia di Caserta ) is a former royal residence in Caserta, southern Italy, constructed by the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies as their main residence as kings of Naples. It is the largest palace erected in Europe ...

in 1752 (some parts),

Luigi Cagnola Marchese Luigi Cagnola (9 June 1762 – 14 August 1833) was a Neoclassical Italian architect. Biography Cagnola was born in Milan. He was sent at the age of fourteen to the Clementine College at Rome, and afterwards studied at the University o ...

's Arco della Pace, the

San Carlo Theatre The Real Teatro di San Carlo ("Royal Theatre of Saint Charles"), as originally named by the Bourbon monarchy but today known simply as the Teatro (di) San Carlo, is an opera house in Naples, Italy, connected to the Royal Palace and adjacent to ...

(

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, 1810),Encyclopedia.farlex.com
/ref> San Francesco di Paolo (Naples, 1817),

Pedrocchi Café The Pedrocchi Café (Caffè Pedrocchi in Italian) is a café founded in the 18th century in central Padua, Italy. It has architectural prominence because its rooms were decorated in diverse styles, arranged in an eclectic ensemble by the architect ...

(

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of t ...

, 1816), Canova Temple, (Posagno, 1819),

Teatro Carlo Felice The Teatro Carlo Felice is the principal opera house of Genoa, Italy, used for performances of opera, ballet, orchestral music, and recitals. It is located on the side of Piazza De Ferrari. The hall is named for King Carlo Felice, and dates fro ...

(

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...

, 1827) and the Cisternone ( Livorno, 1829).

Gallery

Image:Napoli-piazzaplebiscito01.jpg, The Church of San Francesco di Paola (Naples) Image:8878 - Milano - P.za Belgiojoso - Palazzo Belgiojoso - Foto Giovanni Dall'Orto - 14-Apr-2007.jpg, Palazzo Belgiojoso,

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard language, Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the List of cities in Italy, second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 ...

Image:Desio_villa_Tittoni_Traversi_vista.jpg, Villa Tittoni Traversi, Desio, garden facade Image:VillaMelziLago.jpg, A view from

Lake Como Lake Como ( it, Lago di Como , ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh de Còmm , ''Cómm'' or ''Cùmm'' ), also known as Lario (; after the la, Larius Lacus), is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the thir ...

on the Neoclassical Villa Melzi Image:Bergamo accademia carrara 06.jpg, The

Accademia Carrara The Accademia Carrara, (), officially Accademia Carrara di Belle Arti di Bergamo, is an art gallery and an academy of fine arts in Bergamo, in Lombardy in northern Italy. The art gallery was established in about 1780 by , a Bergamasco col ...

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes C ...

Image:Villa Olmo 1.JPG, The Neoclassical

Villa Olmo Villa Olmo is a neoclassical villa located in the city of Como, northern Italy. The villa was commissioned by marquis Innocenzo Odescalchi from Swiss architect Simone Cantoni in 1797. As it was designed to be a summer retreat for the aristocrac ...

Como Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label=Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Its proximity to Lake Como and to the Alps has m ...

Image:03566 - Casello sin Porta Venezia, Milano - Foto Giovanni Dall'Orto 23-Jun-2007.jpg, One of the Porta Venezia booths in Milan, sandwiched between

Corso Venezia Corso Venezia is a street in Milan, Italy. It is one of the city's most exclusive and elegant avenues, being part of the city's upscale ''Quadrilatero della moda'' shopping district, along with Via Montenapoleone, Via della Spiga, Via Sant'Andrea ...

and

Corso Buenos Aires Corso Buenos Aires is a major street in north-eastern Milan, Italy. With over 350 shops and outlets, it features the highest concentration of clothing stores in Europe. The architecture of the area is mostly late 19th- and 20th-century style; th ...

Image:19TorinoGranMadreDio.JPG, The

Gran Madre di Dio, Turin The church of Gran Madre di Dio is a Neoclassic-style church located on the western bank of the Po River, facing the Ponte Vittorio Emanuele I leading into Piazza Vittorio Veneto, Turin, region of Piedmont, Italy. Description The church was conc ...

References

{{Reflist *Italian Architecture in Italy Architectural styles

History and influences

Buildings and edifices

Gallery

See also

References