Title: Andrea Palladio
Author: Lionello Puppi
Publisher: New York Graphic Society, 1975
Text by Lionello Puppi; 465 pages, 629 black and white illustrations
Andrea Palladio was the architect responsible for shaping the ideals of High Renaissance elegance. Drawing heavily on the principles of classical Roman architecture, he is responsible for many important Venetian structures, as well as the expanded scope of agricultural villas to circumscribe the outlying buildings in a consolidated structure regulated by symmetry, classical architectural details, and often encompassed by a dome. The first half of this substantial monograph is devoted to a scholarly interpretation of Palladio’s philosophical, historical, political, and economic motivations and influences. Because of the importance of his work as an architect and an architectural theorist, special attention is paid to his notable series, Quattro Libri dell’Architettura. The second portion of the book is a chronological catalogue raisonné of both destroyed and existing structures, complete with photographs, and reproductions of original plans, sketches, and maps. Andrea Palladio is an excellent resource of primary and secondary sources for architectural scholars, as well as for those who are interested in the application of Palladian principles by subsequent architects like Christopher Wren and Inigo Jones.
