Palladio’s Villa Trissino, the incredible story of the world heritage architectural jewel

Dear Architecture Enthusiasts,

As Daniela Uslan, I’m thrilled to recommend “Palladio’s Villa Trissino: The Incredible Story of a World Heritage Architectural Jewel.” This captivating book delves into the history and significance of one of Andrea Palladio’s most remarkable creations.

Key facts:
• Built: 1550-1560
• Location: Cricoli, Vicenza, Italy
• UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1994
• Innovative design combining classical elements with local traditions

The author masterfully weaves together:
1. Palladio’s architectural genius
2. The villa’s influence on Western architecture
3. Its restoration and preservation efforts

For a glimpse of the villa’s beauty, visit: UNESCO World Heritage Centre

This book is essential for:
• Architecture students
• Art historians
• Renaissance enthusiasts

Discover how Villa Trissino shaped the course of architectural history and continues to inspire designers today. Find more about Palladio’s works here: Palladio Museum

Don’t miss this opportunity to explore one of the most significant architectural marvels of the Italian Renaissance!.

Andrea Palladio is considered one of the most important Italian architects of all time, who created valuable works of art now enclosed within the UNESCO World Heritage Site “Vicenza città del Palladio e le ville palladiane nel Veneto.” But there is one place that, although not from his genius, is closely linked to his figure so relevant to the Italian Renaissance. It is Villa Trissino, where its myth can be said to have been born. Let us discover the history and beauty of this spectacular mansion.

Where Villa Trissino is located

There are several historic mansions bearing the same name: Villa Trissino, which we are talking about today, is located just outside the urban center of Vicenza, in a formerly rural location called Cricoli. It is here that, surrounded by a large park and well protected from prying eyes, one can discover the charm of Renaissance architecture that binds the historical figure of Andrea di Pietro, known as Andrea Palladio. The residence faces along Strada Marosticana, with a crenellated boundary wall and a monumental entrance.

Villa Trissino, history

The history of Villa Trissino has its roots in the distant past. First hints of a building constructed in Cricoli, a stone’s throw from Vicenza, date back to the late 15th century: here the Venetian patrician Orso Badoer had a stately manor house built on land won at the game. It was an imposing piece of architecture, with features reminiscent of a turreted medieval castle, definitely innovative for its time. The property ended up, in the following decades, in the hands of Giangiorgio Trissino, papal ambassador and great humanist of the time, well known in Renaissance cultural circles.

In 1535, the man decided to renovate the family mansion in Cricoli, giving it his name: thus appeared the first traces of Villa Trissino, which was now on the verge of becoming a true Renaissance masterpiece. Giangiorgio, who delighted in architecture, did not want to demolish the existing building, limiting himself to a radical transformation, which, from a mansion of Gothic forms, was modernized into a Renaissance residence with references to ancient Roman architecture. He himself was probably responsible, at least in part, for the renovation work.

Among the main changes, there was certainly the construction of a triple-arched loggia located on the ground floor, between two pre-existing towers: the work was inspired by the facade of Villa Madama in Rome, a masterpiece by Raphael (whom Trissino had gotten to know). In 1538, the work was completed: in the following years, Cricoli became a circle of intellectuals and saw many illustrious people pass through. Villa Trissino hosted, for example, the nephew of Pope Leo X, then became the seat of the Accademia Trissinea, a school whose role was to educate the youth of Veneto.

Towards the end of the 1700s, the residence underwent new renovations by the Vicentine architect Ottone Calderari, who responded to the need for the Count Teodoro Trissino to eliminate the last Gothic traces of the building. During the 1800s, the villa-no longer inhabited by the Trissino family-experienced a long period of neglect and fell into decay. Only at the end of the century, sold to the Sforza della Torre family, the mansion returned to its former glory, albeit in a completely different shape. In fact, the new owner erased most of the frescoes and decorations, building instead a large cattle shed and greenhouse.

Upon his death in 1913, Villa Trissino fell again into neglect and became almost a ruin due to World War I. Purchased at auction by Francesco Rigo in 1920, the residence was adapted as a rural dwelling and housed 150 dairy cattle, which for fifty years contributed to the production of the Centrale Comunale del Latte di Vicenza. In the 1990s the villa and its stables were decommissioned, but the historical value of this building did not diminish: in 1994 Villa Trissino became a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The figure of Andrea Palladio

How is Villa Trissino related to the figure of Andrea Palladio? It is certainly not his work, but it is the place where it probably all began. In fact, it is said that Giangiorgio Trissino met a young stonemason named Andrea di Pietro, just as he was working on the construction site of the villa. Immediately he sensed his talents, so he decided to take care of his training: he also took him to Rome on some of his trips, allowing him to study classical architecture, then introduced him to the Vicenza aristocracy.

The young man, impressed from the start by Cricoli’s villa, had no hesitation about his future: following the teachings of Trissino and the masters he had the opportunity to introduce him to, he became a great architect and took the name Andrea Palladio. His history is then well known, so much so that today he is considered one of the major figures in Italian architecture. His Palladian villas are protected by theUNESCO, as masterpieces of world significance. And Villa Trissino is in some ways the basis of his future creations, especially in the symmetry of the facades and interior layout.

What Villa Trissino looks like today

Currently, Villa Trissino is a private property not accessible to the public, except for some extraordinary events that allow visitors to take a look at its majestic halls. The building was recently restored, with some of the work taking place in 2021: this made it possible to restore it to its former glory, especially the facade and decorative apparatus. The main floor and the floor above are used as a private residence, while the nearby barn, which once housed the 150 dairy cattle, have been left abandoned for many years.

After a long controversy, due to bureaucratic complications that took a long time to unravel, the barn was finally converted and converted to managerial use for a legal and financial consulting firm for businesses. It took a full 24 years to complete the work, but it was really worth it: the now converted barn has landed on the pages of numerous architectural magazines for the value and refinement of its details. An important example of how a ruin can be revolutionized into an architectural work spectacular.