Palladio's Villa Rotonda - IN PERSON
When broadly asked what my favorite building is I have always answered " The Villa Rotonda ". While in Venice I finally got to see it in person and I can honestly say my answer has not changed (phew)! The most famous of structures by the most famous of architects, Andrea Palladio , the villa is by definition one of the most perfect examples of classicism; Symmetry, scale, and proportion all reign here. While we've all seen so many pictures of the house I still found a lot of surprises around each corner. The first surprise was that the house creates a strong hilltop axis with the family chapel on the other side of the road from the entry drive. Who knew? A barn and a retaining wall flank the sloped drive up to the house from the road while a small classical chapel is perched on the hillside opposite - making the visibility of the road disappear from the house much like in a British ' haha '. No, I didn't make a joke, click the link to see what a Haha is! Ther...