Villa Capra la Rotonda

Villa Capra Rotonda is in northern Italy it was designed by Andrea Palladio. The correct name is Villa Almerico-Capra. also, known as La Rotonda, Villa Rotunda, Villa La Rotonda, and Villa Almerico. The building was named after the Capra brothers who completed it. villa Capra is now conserved as part of the World Heritage Site like many other work by Palladio: such as "City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto".

construction began in the year 1567. Palladio, and the owner, Paolo Almerico, were not to see the completion of the villa. Palladio died in 1580 and a second architect, Vincenzo Scamozzi, was employed by the new owners to oversee the completion. One of the major changes he made to the original plan was to modify the two-storey centre hall. Palladio had intended it to be covered by a high semi-circular dome but Scamozzi designed a lower dome with an oculus (intended to be open to the sky) inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. 

The highlight of the interior is the central circular hall, surrounded by a balcony and covered by the domed ceiling; it soars the full height of the main house up to the cupola, with walls decorated in trompe l'oeil. Abundant frescoes create an atmosphere that is more reminiscent of a cathedral than the principal salon of a country house. From the porticos, wonderful views of the surrounding countryside can be seen; this is no coincidence as the Villa was designed to be in perfect harmony with the landscape. This was in complete contrast to such buildings as Villa Farnese of just 16 years earlier. Thus, while the house appears to be completely symmetrical, it has certain deviations, designed to allow each facade to complement the surrounding landscape and topography. Hence there are variations in the facades, in the width of steps, retaining walls. In this way, the symmetry of the architecture allows for the asymmetry of the landscape, and creates a seemingly symmetrical whole. The landscape is a panoramic vision of trees and meadows and woods, with the distant Vicenza on the horizon.

The northwest portico is set onto the hill as the termination of a straight carriage drive from the principal gates. This carriageway is an avenue between the service blocks. As you get closer to the villa from this angle it was made to feel as though ascending from some less worthy place to a temple on high. This same view in reverse, from the villa.

The design of the building is completely symmetrical with a square plan and four facades. It reflected the humanist values of Renaissance architecture “The whole is contained within an imaginary circle which touches each corner of the building and centres of the porticos. The name La Rotonda refers to the central circular hall with its dome. To describe the villa, the building is not circular but rather the intersection of a square with a cross. Each portico has steps leading up, and opens via a small cabinet or corridor to the circular domed central hall. This and all other rooms were proportioned with mathematical precision per Palladio's own rules of architecture which he published in the Quattro Libri dell’Architettura. For each room to have some sun, the design was rotated 45 degrees from each cardinal point of the compass. Each of the four porticos has pediments graced by statues of classical deities. The pediments were each supported by six Ionic columns. 

The interior design was made to be as wonderful as the exterior. Alessandro and Giovanni Battista Maganzia and Anselmo Canera were commissioned to paint frescoes in the principal salons. Among the four principal salons on the piano nobile are the West Salon (also called the Holy Room, because of the religious nature of its frescoes and ceiling), and the East Salon, contains an allegorical life story of the first owner Paolo Almerico, his many admirable qualities was portrayed in fresco.

Work cited :

Palladio, Andrea"I quatro libri dell' arquitecttura di Andrea Palladio"Dominico de' Franceschi (Italian, active 1557–86)