Villas of the Veneto Architecture and life-style in the age of Palladio

Study Tour Overview

Andrea Palladio is one of the most influential architects of all time. To a large extent, his enduring fame was the result of his publication in 1570 of the Quattro Libri dell'Architettura which made his designs available to architects all over the world. But it is Palladio’s homeland, the rich countryside surrounding Padua, Vicenza and Verona, where we can admire his most famous buildings: the stately villas of the Veneto. From the middle of the 14th century, wealthy Venetians and mainland aristocrats alike wanted grand buildings from which to overlook and manage their vast farmlands, whether in the river plains of the rivers Brenta, Adige and Po, or in the hills between the Valpolicella, Bassano del Grappa and Asolo. Since Petrarch's times, these country houses answered agricultural needs and reflected social status, but they were also places of relaxation and pleasurable pursuits, where their owners withdrew from the busy life in town. All these aspects found perfect expression in Palladio's buildings. Moreover, they were beautifully proportioned and drew on the prestigious vocabulary of Classical architecture. This Art Pursuits Abroad Study Tour will visit most of this architect's surviving villas and compare them with their mediaeval precedents, contemporary designs as well as with 18th-century reinterpretations.

 Programme Details

Day 1	Morning flight with BA from London Heathrow to Venice. On our way to Vicenza, we will stop at the magnificent 18th-century Villa Pisani at Stra with its garden follies and a fantastic trompe-l'oeil Tiepolo ceiling. From here continue to your four-star hotel where all six nights of the tour will be spent.
Day 2	In-depth exploration of Vicenza to admire Palladio’s handsome town architecture, from his ingenious town hall, better known as the Basilica, to the fabulous Teatro Olimpico, the first purpose-built secular theatre building since Antiquity. After lunch, a short coach trip will take us to Palladio’s unfinished Villa Thiene at Quinto Vicentino, a fascinating architectural-historical puzzle.
Day 3	In the morning, coach excursion to Villa Godi, Palladio’s earliest house in the country, austere on the outside, but with beautifully frescoed interiors. After lunch in the outbuildings of the villa, return towards Vicenza to visit Palladio’s most famous building, the Villa Rotonda with four identical temple fronts. A short walk through enchanting countryside will take us to the nearby 17th-century Villa Valmarana ai Nani, frescoed by Giambattista Tiepolo and his son Domenico in the 1750s.
Day 4	Four grand villas situated to the south and southwest of Vicenza are this day’s destinations: Palladio’s Villa Pisani at Bagnolo and Villa Poiana at Poiana Maggiore embody the perfect symbiosis of farmstead and country palace, while the nearby Rocca Pisana by Palladio's pupil Vincenzo Scamozzi, majestically placed on the top of a hill, demonstrates Palladio’s influence on the next generation. Return to Vicenza via the 18th-century Villa Cordellina with frescoes by Tiepolo.
Day 5	The 1550s were the period of Palladio’s greatest activity as a villa architect: enjoy visits to the royal Villa Cornaro at Piombino Dese and Villa Barbaro at Maser, arguably the most beautiful of them all, with its magnificent fresco cycle by Paolo Veronese. Continue to monumental Villa Emo at Fanzolo, a perfectly proportioned manor house, with its splendid fresco decoration by Giambattista Zelotti.
Day 6	By coach towards Venice where the palatial Villa Foscari at Malcontenta is picturesquely reflected in the smooth waters of the Brenta canal. From there coach transfer to Venice airport for an early afternoon flight with British Airways to London Heathrow, scheduled to land at c. 3pm.