The title “Architetture di Invenzione” is inspired by the title given by G. Battista Piranesi to his “Carceri di Invenzione”, composed of 16 plates conceived and engraved in mid-18th century Rome, produced on several occasions over a period of twenty-five years.
Inventions and caprices question reality, which finally, in the Age of Enlightenment, becomes increasingly objective.
One of the best-known Capricci in the world of architecture is the one in which Canaletto painted a view of Venice between 1756 and 1759. The context tells us that we are in the lagoon city, but the buildings depicted are actually located in other cities. On the right is the Basilica Palladiana, on the left Palazzo Chiericati, both famous buildings in Vicenza designed by Andrea Palladio. In the centre, we find Palladio’s own design for the Rialto Bridge, which was never built. In his Carceri di Invenzione, Piranesi invents a vision that does not follow the rules of perspective but aims to isolate the building and create the monument, or rather to revive the ancient remains. The ruins of ancient Rome, the palaces and the churches are the main subjects of Piranesi’s engravings. The piles of ruins are raw material for building but also for designing a new visionary architecture. Invented architectures are composed of the assembly of architectural elements from different eras.
The philosopher Todorov wrote about Piranesi: “In his theoretical writings, he takes up the debate between the ancient and the modern to defend the position of the latter; it is not enough to admire and imitate the Greeks, it is necessary, after having studied them, to find the courage and the strength to discover what corresponds to one’s own time. The great artist creates the new starting from the old and does not disavow the past but favours invention and creation.”
Carmelo Baglivo, an architect, is one of the founders of the architecture firms IaN+ and BAN, which have distinguished themselves in recent years by winning prizes in national competitions. IaN+ won the Gold Medal for Italian Architecture (first work). BaN won the prestigious competition for the new Piazza Transalpina for Gorizia, European Capital of Culture 2025. Both studios have been invited to numerous exhibitions, from the Venice Biennale to the FRAC museum in OrIeans. Carmelo Baglivo’s drawings have been exhibited in several exhibitions, including: “Cut ‘n’ Paste”, at the MoMA in New York; ”Innesti”, at the Italian Pavilion of the 2014 Venice Biennale; ”Disegni Corsari”, at the Marino Marini Museum in Florence. He was an adjunct professor in the faculties of architecture of Genoa and Ferrara. His latest publication is ‘Disegni Corsari’, ed. Libri.
Photograph of the event: Tempio Miesiano, Carmelo Baglivo
Communications Office of the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome
Coordination: Prof. Guglielmo Gigliotti g.gigliotti@abaroma.it
Collaboration: Chiara Picco, Martina Macchia, Marianna Pontillo comunicazione@abaroma.it