- Villa Piovene
Villa Piovene is a Palladian villa built in Lonedo di Lugo (
province of Vicenza ). The building was commissioned in the 16th century for the aristocraticPiovene family and their architectis believed to have beenAndrea Palladio .History
Villa Piovene was built around 1539-40 in competition to and within the immediate vicinity of
Villa Godi . Rivalries have been proven to exist between the Piovene and Godi families. The villa was the ambitions ofBattista Piovene and his sonTommaso Piovene , the latter was probably responsible for commissioning the structure. The Piovene family seemed less interested in matching the size of Villa Godi as they were in the choice of the artisan workshop carrying out the work, that ofGiovanni di Giacomo da Polezza fromPedemuro , who also was responsible for the execution of Villa Godi.Architectural Details
From existing documents, the villa was originally smaller than it appears today: the
loggia that projects in the center - six Ionic columns supporting a triangular gable - was begun by Palladio around 1570 and completed after his death in 1587. The extension of the mansion and the vertical window rhythms can also be assumed to have taken place within the 1570s, and was in accordance with Palladio's wishes, though not carried out by him. The two flights of steps which lead from the lower storey up to the loggia can be attributed toFrancesco Muttoni , as can the two farm wings with the "barchesse".Today, the villa is seen against a
picturesque backdrop of a garden, which was laid out in the 19th century, situated in the plain of theAstico River . In 1996UNESCO included the building within theWorld Heritage Site "City of Vicenza and thePalladian Villas of the Veneto ".Referenced by
Wundram, Manfred; "Andrea Palladio 1508-1580, Architect between the Renaissance and Baroque"
Taschen ,Cologne 1993; ISBN 3-8228-0271-9; pp. 20-21
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