wk12-Frampton-On Scarpa-Adoration of joint

20 Pages·2010·1.2 MB·English

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The Poetics of Construction
in Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Architecture
9 Carlo Scarpa
and the Adoration of the Joint
Theseareonlysomeofthethoughtsevokedbybringingtogetherphilosophyandarch/tec·
tureunderthesignofinterpretation,andIrealizethattheyareonlyhints,sparsesugges~
tlons.Itmaybenecessarytotakesomethingelseintoaccount:namely, thatedification
hastwoprincipalmeanings-tobuildandtobemorallyuplifting.Botharequiteclosely
tiedintoday'srathervertiginouscomingandgoingbetweenarchitectureandphilosophy,
insofarasonecanIndividuateevenremotesimilaritiesbetweenthetwo. Thatis,edifica
tionmustbeethical,entailingcommunicationofvaluechoices.Inthepresentsituationof
thoughtontheonehandandarchitectonicexperienceontheother(weshallconsiderthis
aprovisionalandlim/tedconclusion), theonlypossibilityofedifyinginthesenseofbuild
ingistoedifyinthesenseof"renderingethical,"thatis, toencourageanethicallife:to
workwiththerecollectionoftraditions, withthetracesofthepast, withtheexpectations
ofmeaningforthefuturo, sincetherecannolongerbeabsoluterationaldeductions.
Therefollowsthenedificationasafosteringofemotions,ofethicalpresentability, which
canprobablyseIVeasthebasisforanarchitecturewhichisdeterminednotbythewhole
butbytheparts.
GianniVattimo, 1987
TheworkofCarloScarpa(1906-1978)maybeseen asawatershed intheevolu
tionoftwentieth-centuryarchitecture, notonlyfortheemphasisthat heplaced
uponthejointbutalsoforhisparticularuseofmontageasastrategyforinte
grating heterogeneouselements. Throughouthiswork, thejointistreated asa
kind oftectonic condensation; asan intersectionembodyingthewhole inthe
part, irrespectiveofwhethertheconnection inquestion isan articulation ora
bearing oreven an altogetherlargerlinkingcomponent such asastairora
bridge. All ofthisisimmediatelyapparentinScarpa'sfirstworkofconsequence,
the renovation and reorganizationofthe FondazioneQuerini StampaliainVen
ice,completed in 1963.Inthis instance, astereotomic earthwork, laid intothe
undercroftofasixteenth-centurypalace, isaccessedbyalightweightbridge
thatactsasakind offixed hingebetweentheterrafirmaofthecampoandthe
transformed shell ofthepalazzo(fig. 9.1).
Incontrasttothis lightweight,flatarch resting on stoneabutments, Scarpa
renderstheearthworkasamonolithicconcretetray(fig. 9.2). Separatedfrom
theexistingwalls, thistrayservesnotonlytocontain butalsoto representthe
seasonal flooding ofthecity. Thisshallowconcretewalkway, paved withtiles,
embodiesthetraditions ofVeniceinmorewaysthanone, firstbycontainingthe
acquaaltaand secondbyaffording directgondolaaccessthroughtheexisting
portego.1Theceremonial natureofthis lastisimpliedbyawindingstairde
scendingtothecanal andbyopenworkornamental gates,dressedin metal,
thatfillthetwin-arched openings ofthe portico(fig. 9.3). Inthisway, Scarpaar
rangesfortwocomplementaryentries: aneverydaypassagefromthecampo
viaadelicatelyarticulatedbridge, and amorehonorificapproachfromthewa
ter;an approachthat initssymbolicobsolescenceisan elaboratereminderof
theoriginalmodeofenteringthepalace. As MariaAntoniettaCrippahasre
marked, thewholeofthissequenceistreated asakind ofthree-dimensional
inlay.
The smallentrancehall-itsmosaicfloorreminiscentofadesignbyJoseph
AlbersthatScarpahadoriginallyintendedtoreproduce-givesontoamarble
dressedstaircaseleadingtothelibraryandalsoontoagangwayabovethe
r
I
9.1
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueTin!Stampalia,
Venice, 1963.Bridge.
9.2
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueTiniStampalia.
ground-floorplan:
1.woodenbridge
2.entry
3.foyer
4.concretecauseway
5.stepsdowntocanalentry
6.galleryentrance
7.radiators
B.maingallery
9.secretdoor
10.smallgallery
11.stairtolibrary
12.gardenportico
13.fountain
14.stonelion
8 15.sump
16.oldwell
17.steppingstones
18.lilypond
19.outflow
20.porter'scourt
21.gardencourt
9.3
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueriniStampalia,
ornamentalgates.
-----c-"-- 9.'
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueriniStampalia,
mainexhibithall.
300
entranceareathatleadsintothegreathallonthegroundflooroppositethe
portago. Thestonegangwaycrossingtheportagoisalmostlikeabridgeover
lookingthelagoon;from itonecanseetheebbandflowofwaterplayinginto
thecisternsplacedonvariouslevels.Asheetofglassseparatesthisgangway
from thegreathall. Theradiators in thegreathallBfeconcealedwithinapara/
Ie/pipedwithgoldenlinesandglasspanelsfittingintoeachother, whichhas
ageometricsimilaritytothemosaicin theentrancehall.Seventeenthcentury
mouldingsandremnantsofwalls, clearlydistinctfrommodernadditions, Brevis
iblethroughout.2
Scarpa'scharacteristic useofrevetment makesitselfevidenthereinthetraver
tineliningtothewallsofthegreathall, where, apartfromthetraditional useof
stonecladding,thereisthesuggestion ofametonymicexchangebetween
wood andmasonry; betweenwoodasitisemployed inthedeckand handrailof
thebridgeandtravertineasitislaidupagainstthewallsoftheexhibition space
(fig. 9.4).Stonethusappearsintwo aspects; inthefirstsimplyascladding and
inthesecondasakind of"wood,"where itisincised, inlaid,andhingedas
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though itwere petrifiedcabinetwork. Such areading isimpliedbyaslotted
brassrail, letintothestonecladdingtoform ahorizontalgrooveateyeheight,
forthe purposesofhanging pictures.This material interplayisenhanced by10
centimeter-wide, ground-glasspanelssetflush withthetravertine revetment. As
translucentcoverstoneontubes, these luminousaccentsrun acrossthewall
likeadescant,echoing asimilarmodulation in theconcretefloorthat issubdi
vided bystripsofIstrianstoneofthesamewidth. Thesetranslucentcover
platesconstituteaseriesofvertical accentsthatdoubleupinpairsastheyrun
down thedepthofthespace. Scarpamayhavederivedthis syncopated ar
rangement in partfromthe Neoplasticistwall reliefthatTheavan Doesburg de
signed forthe CafeAubette in 1926(fig. 9.5)and inpartfrom Le Corbusier's
proportional system, aspublishedin hisbookLeModulortwentyyears later
(fig. 9.6).
Stonetreated ascabinetwork isalso evidentinthe hingeddoortothesidegal
lery, madeout ofasinglesheetoftravertine, that iscutoutonitsfront and
carved on itsretroface (fig. 9.7).Throughout, brassisthe keyforthismetonymic
transposition between stoneand wood, sincetheinlaid picturerail, running
aroundthegallery, recallsasimilaruseofbrassconnectors in the bridgehand
9.5 rail. Suchaccoutrementsalludebothto marinedetailingandtothekind offit
TheovanDoesburg,CafeAubette,Stras tingsfound ineighteenth-centurygentleman'sfurniture(fig. 9.8).
bourg,1926-1928.Elevationofcabaretwall.
9.7
Likeall ofScarpa'sbridges, theQuerini Stampaliapasserelle isstructured about
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueriniStampalia,
9.6 thethemesofbearing andtransition, which mayexplain oneofthe least doortogalleryannex.
LeCorbusier, Modularsystem,1946. noticed featuresofthisbridge, namelyitscontrived asymmetry, particularly
sincethedatumon eithersideisalmostthesame(seefig. 9.1).3Itseemsthat
9.8
thisasymmetryaroseoutoftheneed to meettwodifferentconditions: on one ReflectingdressingtableorRudd'stable,
handthebridgehadto behighenoughto permitgondolasto pass closetothe 1788.
campo; ontheotherhand ithadtocomedown lowerand moregraduallyinor
dertoclearthe lintelofthebuilding entry. All ofthis iseffected bydisplacingthe
bearings ofthe layeredsuperstructuresothatthepointofthehingedsupportis
70 centimeters higheronthelandwardside. Thus, onestepsupfromabutments
in Istrianstonebeforecrossingtwooaktreadsontothecurved oakdeckofthe
bridgeitself.Thedescent,ontheotherhand, iseffected byfivesimilartreads,
the lastofwhich liesflushwiththestonethreshold tothepalace. Oftheseven
woodentreads,threearesetflushwiththesurfacestowhichtheygiveaccess.
This redundancy, togetherwiththesubdivision oftheoakdecking, makesthe
distinctionbetweenthreshold and span ambiguous.Thedeckfunctionsasa
kindoftectonicelisionthatsimultaneouslybothextendsandcurtailsone'sexpe
rienceofcrossing.This inflectionfindsitscorrespondence inthebalustrading,
302 303
which isshortened onthe landwardsideand extendedtowardthe building.The
unequalspacing ofuprightsthatresultsfrom thisasymmetrynecessitatesa
twin-rail balustrade, sinceanunbracedhandrail would beinsufficientforthe
longspan. Inthiscombination, alowerstructural rail intubularsteel and anup
perhandrail in teak, wefindthatsynthesisofstructural economyand ergonomic
form thatissocharacteristic ofScarpa'swork.
Thehighestpointoftheacquaalta, indicated bythe heightoftheconcrete up
standintheentry, finds reflection inthesurfacetreatmentofthemainexhibition
space, wherethetravertinestopsshortatthe samedatumandthe exposed ag
gregateconcretefloor istaken upto meetit.ThestripsofIstrianstonesubdivid
ingthisrelativelyinexpressiveflooramounttoakindofbasketworkthat bonds
theconcretetanking intoaunity.Thesebandsareirregularlymodulated, thereby
echoingbutnotfollowingthesyncopation ofthewall revetment(seefig. 9.2). In
additiontothis modulation,thesecoursesseemto besubtlyaligned so asto
correspond with an existing splayintheplanformofthe building. Thus, while
thefirstthreetransverseIstrianstripson enteringthegalleryaresetatright thespacethat passesfrom lefttorighttowardthegardencourt. This movement
anglestothewallsoftheexhibition space, the remaining strips, nineinall (five isunderlinedbythe placementofiron radiators; avertical, encasedstackatthe
singlesandtwodoubles),appearto benormaltothewallsofthe stairhall.4This entryand asingle, freestanding horizontalradiatorbracketed offthefloorto one
subtleadjustmentinalignmentisaccompanied byadiagonal inflectionthrough sideoftheglazedopeningtothegarden.Theconcretestanchions supporting
thearmoredplateglassgardendoorsarealsotreated aselementsinaNeoplas
ticist composition, sothatwheretheaxisofoneliesparalleltothecrossaxisof
9.9 the halltheotherisrotated ninetydegrees;eachbeinginscribed with agilded
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueriniStampalia,
baronitsface(fig. 9.9).This rotation issubtlyreflected inthetreatmentofthe
glassdoorstogarden.
glassitself,sothata10-centimeter, ground-glasslightpanelplanted on oneof
thestanchionsisbalanced bytwo5-centimetersafetystripsetched intothe
9.10
plateglass. Asimilarasymmetricaltranslucent light panel and safetystripare
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueTiniStampalia,
waterchannelingarden,sumptotheleft, alsoincorporated intotheglazed screen wall separatingtheexhibitionhallfrom
fountaintotheright. theinitialfoyer.
A parallelplaywith asymmetrical elementsappearsin thewaterchannel running
acrossthegardencourt, in whichtwo differentspirals, arectilinearfountain in
Apuan marbleand acircularconcretedrain,arethebeginningand theend ofa
flowrunningfrom easttowest, passing beneath aVenetianstonelionbywhich
thechannel issurmounted(fig. 9.10). ThisIslamicreferenceseemsdoubly
significantinthattheflowfromtheeastnotonlyservestoevokethedepen
dencyofVeniceontheOrientbut alsoScarpa'sown genealogy; hisself
characterization as"aman ofByzantium, whocametoVenicebywayof
Greece."Atthesametimethisfountain mayberead asametaphorforthelife
cycle. AsGiuseppeZambonini haswritten:
Waterisusedasacounterpointto thetreatmentofthegroundfloorofthePa
lazzo. ItssourceisasmalJlabyrinthcarvedinmarblewhichsuggeststhepainof
itsforcedbirth. ItIsthenchanneledthroughalongtrough.paralleltotheRio
(SantaMariaFormosa)whichextendsalmosttheentirelengthofthegarden. It
thenpassesbeneathastonelionthatfaces thesourceandfinalJydisappears
intothedrain whichismagnificentlyexpressiveoftheideaofvortex.5
The influenceofChinainScarpa'sworkcan hardlybeoverestimated,particu
larlywhen itcomestothewalled gardensofboth theQuerini Stampaliaandthe
BrionCemeteryinSanVitod'Altivole.6 In both instancesafriezeofenameled
tiles, asan artificialhorizon, isinlaidintocertainsectionsoftheperimeterwalls.
In Venicethis ismatched bythetiled liningofalilypond laid outtothedesigns
30S
InScarpa'sworkeverythingturns onthejointtosuch anextentthat,topara
phraseLeCorbusier,thejointisthegeneratorratherthantheplan,notonlyinre
spectofthewholebutalsowith regardtoalternativesolutionslyinglatent,asit
were, within anyparticularpart(fig. 9.12). Thesealternativesarisespontane
ouslyfrom Scarpa'smethod, hishabitofdraWing inrelief, wherein aninitial
charcoal sketchoncard, oneofhisfamouscartoni, becomesprogressivelyelab
orated andoverlaidbytraces,washes,andevenwhite-outto befollOWedbyfur
therdelineations, entering intoacyclical processoferasureandredesign
respectofagivenjunction, withouteverfUllyabandoningthefirst incarnationof
thesolution. Inthisway, asMarcoFrascari hasremarked, Scarpa'scartoni
serveasanarchaeologyoftheproject: "InScarpa'sarchitecturalproductionrela
tionships betweenthewholeandtheparts, andthe relationship betweencrafts
manshipand draftsmanship,allowadirectsubstantiationincorporeviiiofthe
identityofthe processofperceptionandproduction,that is,the unionofthe
constructionwiththeconstruing."8
Thisobservation stressestwo essential aspectsofScarpa'smethod, firstthe
gesturalimpUlsepassing almostwithoutabreakfrom theact ofdraftingtothe
actofmaking,andsecondareciprocityobtainingbetweenwhatFrascaricharac
terizesasthetechneoflogosand thelogosoftechne;thatistosay, between
construing aparticularform and constructing itsrealization (andthen, laterin
thecycle, themomentin whichtheuserconstruesthesignificanceofthecon
struction). Weareclose heretoGiambattistaVico'santi-Caiesianideaofcorpo
real imagination. Scarpawould directlyacknOWledgethisaifinityon succeeding
tothedeanshipofthe lstitutoUniversitariodiArchitetturadiVeneziabysuperim
posingtheViconian mottoVerumfpsum Factum on theschool'sdiplomaand,
later, byinscribingthesamelegend intohisdesignforthe school portal, thereby
literallydedicatingarchitectstotheViconian pursuitof"truththrough making."
While ScarpamayhavebecomefamiliarwithVico'sthought byreading Bene
dettoCroce'sAesthetica of1909,anothersourcewould havebeenthe
eighteenth-centuryVenetian architectCarloLodoli whowasacontemporary
and apromoterofVico's ideas.9Vico'sVerumIpsumFactumwould havebeen
ofthe painterMariodeLuigi (fig. 9.11).AsAlbertini andBagnoiihavesug
9.11
gested, thesetiled ornamentsin Muranoglassinitiateand enrichtheprome
CarloScarpa,FondazioneQueriniStampalia,
nadethrough thecourt.
lilypond.
~arden
The formsarectangleroughlycorrespondingto twosquares, each 12m
persIde, cutbyaconcretedividingwall. Itislargelylaidoutwithlawnand 9.12
s~rubs.Asquarecoppercontainerforpapyrusplantsisinsetinalargerpond CarloScarpa,Briontomb,SanVitod'Altivole,
1969.Mapofdetails.
fiveted.Withmosaictesserae;herewatercollectsbeforerechanneling. Isolated
from thiS, asmallbasin(75 x 33.5 x 4.5-6em), formedofApuanmarbieofa
~urpliShhue, collects the waterdrippingintoitfromasmallpipeandchannelsit
~ntoaminiaturemaze, whereitfillsaseriesofshallowconcavitiesbeforeflowing
mtoalong, deepwaterCoursein which waterliliesflourish. Attheendopposite
thesmallbasin servingasabirdbathforthe wingedinhabitantsofthegarden a
~n
low,cascadelendsimpetusto theflowofwater, carryingitintoproximitywith
ancIentandnowdrywellhead. Ashortpathwithanumberofstepscompletes
thegardeniayout, branchingofffrom thegiazedwaiioftheporticotoleadthe
VIsitoreithertowardthepapyruspoolorin thedirectionofthe wellhead.
7
306
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I, oimwpnoartcatnivtitfyoraSndcasrepcaoantdtwinoplreovveildsi;nfgirsatpinhicloosnofiprmhyinogftehdeuccoagtinoniti.vAecacsoprdeicntgotfohis .. ']: ":::1: ':.. .".,,:....,, "..'.d:. ::"::f.:", '.'...," --~•• L-_ ---1
Vieo, knowledgewastobeacquirednotthrough passiveacceptancebut 7 : \
,
through itsactiveformulation-foronlythen canthesubjecttakepossessionof
!
it. ForScarpa, asforotherarchitects,thefirstinterventionin thisprocesswas ,
1
, 'I
thedelineationofthethingto beconstructed, whilethesecondwastheon-site
processofitsrealization.As HubertDamisch hasremarked, i ,
j
0 I
Theessentialgoalthereforeliesin thepurposeofverification,ifnotactuallyex II ~
perimentation, whichScarpaassignsto thedrawing, whichhastoembodyall H
D
necessarymisgivings. Forinstance, aperspectiveimageofastaircasedoesnot
U
'
allowsufficientaccuracyinidentifyingthenumberofstepsandtheirheight, let iii,
alonethedetailsoftheirjointing-jointingbeingalink-up withCezanne'sdoubt.
A crWcalpositionofthiskindacquiresspecialsignificanceata timelikethepres
ent, characterizedbyanattempttoreducearchitecturalthoughtto thesingledi
mensionofanimage, to thedetrimentofitssymbolicalandrealdimensions, In
tivedetail,Scarpainsertedasmallbrasswasheratthe pointofthe
thisthereisnoparadox;themanwhorevealedthefullpotentialofmuseumarchi
tecturealsoutteredthemoststringentcriticismsoftheever-recurringerrorof intersection.'2
confusingarchitecturewithitsimageoranykindofscenography.10 Scarpa'saffinityforthearchaicmadeitselfmanifestnotonlyintheSCUlptural
simplicityofhisform butalsointhehieraticelaboration ofhisjoints.Aswe have
Amore preciseanalysisofthevariouslevelsinvolvedinScarpa'sdelineatory
alreadyseen, ratherthan simplyjuxtaposethesupportandthe load(StUtzeund
method hasbeenprovidedbySergioLos, whodistinguishesbetweenthree
Last), Scarpawould "postpone"thefinal momentofsupport, asisevidentfrom
kindsofdrawings. Thefirstisthecartone, Scarpa'sinitialdrawingon stiffochre
his1975projectforabridgeoverthearchaeologicai remainsatFeltre(fig, 9,13)
cardthatwouldthen beoverlaidwith variantsofthesamedetailontracing pa
orinthevariouscapitalshewould inventinhislateryears. Asimilarprotraction
per;iffoundto besUfficientlystable, theseversionswould beincorporatedinto
isevidentintheground floorofthe MuseodiCastelvecchioinVerona, where in
thebasicdrawingon card. Inthiswaythespecificoutlineoftheworkwould be
tersecting concretefloorbeamsarecarried atmidpointbybuilt-up, riveted steel
developed, with incidentalmarkingsinpencil andindiluteblackandred India
beams(fig. 9.14). the postponementofthe bearing in this instancederived,as
ink. Thisevolutionarymanner,sotospeak, assuredanindestructiblerecord of
Scarpahimselfwould reveal, from thespatial continuityoftheground-floorenfi
thedesignprocesswith regardtothe initialschema. Thisprocedurewould be
ladesubdivided intofivecubicvolumes. Ineach cubeatransversesteelbeam
sustained, aswehaveseen, bydetaileddrawingsontracing paperinpencH,
wasintroducedrunningalongtheeast-westaxis ofthesequenceandthereby
withcoloredcrayon beingemployedto identifydifferentlayersand levelsin
bothplan andsection. Intheend, ofcourse,thefinal wholewastraced overat unifyingit.As heputit:
theverylastminuteto produceareliableconstruction document." Iwantedtopreservetheoriginalityofeachroom, butIdidn'twanttousetheear
lierbeamsoftherestoration. Sincetheroomsweresquare, Isetapairedsteel
Scarpahadsuch respectforcraftsmanshipthaton occasion hewould detailin
beamtosupportthepointwherethetworeinforcedconcretebeamscrossed, so
suchawayastosuititsproceduralneeds. Thismuch isevidentfrom hishabit
indicatingthemainlinesofthebuilding'sformalstructure. Where theycrossed
offorming L-shapedbracketsoutofsteelplate, cut insuch awayastofacili
theimparlanceofthatsquarewasemphasizedbecausethecrossingofthetwo
tatethemeetingoftwocutsatrightanglesto each other. Scarpadrilledasmall
beamsinthecentreimplies thepillarwhichhelpsdefinethewholespace. Thisis
holeatthecrossing pointsothatthesawwouldchangetonewhen ithitthein
thevisuallogicIwantedtouseasaframeofreference. Thewaythebeamsare
tersection andthus produceacleancutwith nooverrun.Tofinish this produc-
madealsobringsoutthevisuallogicbutonlyin thedetails. Icouldhaveused
thesteelprofilesalreadyon themarket.13
Byestablishingthe pointoftheabsentcolumn, thecylindrical hingedjointbe
9.13
tweentheconcreteandsteel, ostensiblyintroducedinordertoallowfordifferen
CarloScarpa,designforlayoutanddisplayof
tial movement, was ascrucial tothearticulation ofthespaceasthebuilt-up
Romanrelics,FeUre,1975-1978.Section.
characterofthesteeljoist.This obsessionwiththeelaboration ofbearingwould
alsoberemarked on byAlbertini and Bagnoliintheirdescriptionoftheatticcol
9.14
CarloScarpa,MuseodiCastelvecchio,Ve onnadeinthe BancaPopolarediVeronaof1978(fig, 9,15),
rona, 1953-1965.Sectionthroughentrance
A quitecomplexarchitecturalsystemisappliedto thetopstoryoftheBancaPo
room.
polarediVerona-almostamoderninterpretationofanancientorder:supports
308 309
Iongberbeuil.t NotevenaGodtodaycouldinventanAtticb.ase,fw'hichisthe
onlybeautifulone;alltheothersareonlyslags. From thispomt0 vieweven
o 0 o 0
o 0 thosedesignedbyPalladioareawful.Asregardscolumnsandentablaturesonly
00 00
oo0000 0••000 theGreekswereable toreachtheapexofpride. Onlyin theParthenondothe
shapeslivelikemusic.15
oo 00 Withthefactum ofVenetian craftathisside,16Scarpasteered an.u~easy cou.rse
betweentheIegacy°1Art Nouveau-onethinks01Her"mannObnstsEgeypdteosld
column (fig. 9.16), orPerret'snewconcrete capitaldeVised fortheMu.se ..
TravauxPublics(fig. 5.42)-and amoreobjectiveelaborati~noft~ehIngedJOint
insteel construction asthisappears, say, inPeterBehrenss~urblnefact~ryof
1909(Ilg.9.17) orinMiesvan derRohe's NeueNationalgalene.011968(Ilg.
I 9.18). Scarpaevolvedhisjointsnotonlyasfunction~l connectlo,~s butals~,as
~c
fetishized celebrations ofcraftasanendin itself.ThISsenseof nearness, ,to
I· evokeHeidegger'sterm, was notonlyexpressedthrough Scarpa'sel~~oratlon
fthejointbutalsothroughthepatinaandcolorofdelicatesurfacefinishes, ,
o . I II d'nginparticularto Scarpas
demandinghighlyspecializedtechniques. am a u I. .' i _
9.16 revivalofstuccolucido, thattraditional renderingtechniqueInwhich c~loredpg
HermannObrist,MonumenttothePillar, b' ad with limeplasterandothermaterralsto
110011 1898. myieelndthaingdhlympaorblilsehdeudsstuarrfeacceosmremIniniscentofdressedstoneorlacquer.17LI'keathtee
temperatechniquein painting, thecolorinpolishedplaster.app~arstoeman
9.17 fromtheinteriorofthe rendering. AsimilarsynthesisoflumInOSityandtexture
PeterBehrens,AEGturbinefactory,Berlin,
crops upinotheraspects ofScarpa'spalette, fromtheuseofMuranoglasstes-
1909.Detail.
9.15
andarchitraveinmetal, friezeincoloredmosaic, andcornicein whiteBotticino
CarloScarpa,BaneaPopararediVerona.
stone. Thelongribbonofthearchitrave, formedoftwoplategirdersofdiffering
1973-1981.Colonnade.
dimensions(thelarger600romhigh, thesmaller180romhigh)joinedbyriveting
plates, issupportedatregularintervalsbypairsofCOUpledcolonettesintubular
iron(166mmindiameter), replacingthemetalsectionsofanear/ierversion.
Thecolonetlesarefittedwithmuntzmetalcollars, actingaslinkingelementsto
thearchitraveaboveandthebasebeneath. Thisisformedofdeepflats, cutand
milled, rivetedtoaflat(22romdeep)laidonthemasonry. The tallcolumnson
thecourtfronthaveamoreelaboratemuntzmetallinkatthebase:amotiffre
quentfyusedbyScarpaandtypicalofIndianarchitecture, bymeansofWhicha
squareplanbecomes,bysuccessivedivisions, firstoctagonal, thenasixteen
sidedpolygonalfigure, endingupasacircle.Asmallblockofmuntzmetal, re
cessedtoform thesymboloftwointersectingrings, gleamsagainstthedarkiron
aboveeachpairofcolonettes. ConnectorsoftheSamemetalareusedasthe
headandbaseofthecolumnstocreateasinglesupport: thesearesmallele
ments, distancers, screwedtothetubularshafts, artiCUlatingtheproportionsof
thewhole.14
Scarpa's excessivelyarticulatedjointsmayberead asacritical commentaryon
theeconomicexpediencyofourutilitarianageor, alternatively, asaheroicat
tempttocompensateforourinabilitytoequalthepoeticauthorityofclassical
form. Ofthislasthewrote:
Modernlanguageshouldhaveitsownwordsandgrammarjustasthishappened
in thecaseofclassicalforms. ModernshapesandstructuresshOUldbeusedfol
lOWinga classicalorder:... Ishouldlikethata criticCOulddiscoverinmyworks
certainintentionsthatIhaveafwayshad, namelyanenormousdesiretostay
withintraditionbutwithoutbuildingcapitalsandcolumns, becausethesecanno
310
311
moon,male/female, Erosffhantos, itsthree-dimensional rendering inpinkand
seraeforthefloorofhisOlivetti storeonthe PiazzaSan Marcoof1966,tothe
bluetiles mayalsohavealludedtomoremodern sources, tothecosmological
constantinterplayamongtile, marble, metal, andwoodthat issoevidentinthe
valuesofthe primarycolors in Dutch Neoplasticismortotheredand bluepro
multiplefinishes inwhich hisworkabounds.
portional seriesofLeCorbusier'sModulor.21 However,thefactthatScarpaonce
Apartfromthecanonicaljointanditsattendantmembrane,Scarpaoftenconsoli employedthefigureofthesquared circle suggestsadeeperfamiliaritywith her
datedhiswork abouticonicfoci; aboutpivotal sculpturalpieces such asAlberto meticlore(fig. 9.25). Ihavein mindthe"oculi"thatheincorporated intotheup
Viani'sabstractmetalsculpture, poised aboveasheetofblackwater, thatplays perleveloftheOlivettistore, each onebisected byslidingteakandpalisander
suchaprominentroleinthespatial organization ofthePiazzaSan Marcostore screensthat, reminiscentofJapaneseshoji, servemetaphoricallytoopen and
(figs. 9.19, 9.20)orthefulcrum providedbytheCangrandestatueintheMuseo closeeach eye(fig. 9.26).22Inoneformoranotherthevesicapisciswill manifest
diCastelvecchio(fig. 9.21)18orthe ubiquitousdoublecircle motifthatoccursat itselfin much ofScarpa'sarchitectureasakindoftectonic icon, from itsfirst
differentscalesthroughouthiswork. While Scarpa'sobsessionwiththismotif useintheGavinashopfrontrealized in Bolognain 1963(fig. 9.27)to itslastin
hasbeen attributedto manydifferentsources, oneofthemorelikelyoriginsis the BancaPopolaredi Verona, completed afterScarpa'sdeath,whereitappears
themysticalideogram knownasvesicapiscis(fromvesica, bladder, andpiscis, atdifferentscales(fig. 9.28).
fish).19Whilethe interlocking version ofthis iconisreminiscentoftheoriental
WhileScarpaseemsto havemadelittleuseoftheroot-three rectanglecon
yin-yang symbol,italsorepresentstheoppositionbetween solaruniversality
tainedwithin the vesica, henonethelessusedan 11-centimetermodulewhen
9.18 and lunarempiricism(fig. 9.22). Even if,aslegendhasit,Scarpafirstencoun
MiesvanderRohe,NeueNationalgalerie,Ber everpossible, and thisfigure mayberelated tothe inherentdualityofthe
teredthissymbolonapacketofChinesecigarettes, hewouldsurelyhave
lin,1968.Columndetails. vesica, particularlywhen itsmultipleuse yieldsthedoublenumbers22,33, 44,
becomeawareofitsplaceintheEuropeantraditionand ofitslatentcosmicattri
and even5.5 centimetersas ahalf-module.OfScarpa'sobsession withthis
butes. Helaterbecamecognizantofthe role playedbythisfigure in thegenera
9.19 doublenumberpattern anditsrootsintraditional measureFrascarihaswritten:
tion ofcertain church plans,such asBernini'sSant'Andreaal Quirinalein Rome
CarloScarpa,Olivettishop,PiazzaSan
Marco,Venice,1957-1958.Ground-floor (fig. 9.23),20and fromthis hewouldalsohaveknown howsuchaconstruction In Chinaelevenis thenumberoftheTao, butitisnotoften takenin thequantita
plan. maybeusedto proliferateawholeseriesofequilateraltrianglesderivingfrom a tivesenseoftenplusone;itsignifies theunityofthedecadeinitswholeness.
singleside(fig. 9.24).
9.20
Whateveritsattributes, itissomehowfittingthat Scarpawould employthisfig
CarloScarpa,Olivettishop,PiazzaSan
ureasadefinitivesymbolinhislastwork, which, asithappened, wouldalsobe
Marco,section.
hisownresting place: theBrionCemetery, completed posthumouslyin 1979.Ir
respectiveofthe ultimatedialogicalattributesofthe vesicapiscis, whethersun/
,,-;.......-~:,.>:.
-~---~--.~='------ - "V~..--,".
--_._~-~.~-::;~<'"'.~~
=--
-C'"'
~~~!I········
i." ....
I 2 .." •...,..~
I
a
,/ >-..-..,.'
'. a
~S=r; 0/0/
=Ti'illr'i=l==0:1::1
"
9.21
CarloScarpa,MuseodiCastelvecchio,partial "'-'-"'"
section,lookingnorththroughCangrande
space.
312 313