Villa Gazzotti Grimani

Villa Gazzotti Grimani is a Renaissance villa, an early work of architect Andrea Palladio. In 1994 UNESCO designated it as part of the World Heritage Site 'City of Vicenza and Palladian Villas of the Veneto'.

The villa was designed and built in the 1540s for the Venetian Taddeo Gazzotti and, like a number of Palladio's buildings, it incorporates a pre-existing structure. In 1550, before the building was completed, Gazzotti was facing financial problems and sold the villa to Girolamo Grimani.

For the first time Palladio presents the body of the building as a clearly defined cube. The three-fold arcade in the central section, which is reminiscent of Villa Godi, is crowned by a triangular gable and is the dominant shape of the facade.

The body of the building rests on a base, from which it is divided by means of a ledge which runs along the entire width of the facade. On the one hand this serves to protect the working areas from damp, but on the other hand, it also raises the villa above the surrounding landscape.

The villa is currently in need of restoration, particularly the exterior stucco which has peeled to expose the underlying brickwork. The restored Villa Saraceno is an example of how impressive restored stucco can look.

References:

• Wikipedia

Address

Via San Cristoforo 21-23, Vicenza, Italy

Details

Founded: 1540s
Category: Palaces, manors and town halls in Italy