Carlo Fontana

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Carlo Fontana

Carlo Fontana (1634 or 1638 - 1714) was an Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
architect, who was in part responsible for the classicizing direction taken by Late Baroque

Baroque

In the the arts, the Baroque was a Western cultural Epoch , starting roughly at the beginning of the 17th century in Rome, Italy. It was exemplified by drama and grandeur in Baroque sculpture, Baroque painting, literature, Baroque dance, and Baroque music....
Roman architecture.

e seems to be no proof that he belonged to the family of famous architects of the same name, which included Domenico Fontana

Domenico Fontana

Domenico Fontana was a Switzerland-born Italy architect of the late Renaissance.He was born at Melide, Switzerland on the Lake Lugano and died at Naples....
.

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Carlo Fontana (1634 or 1638 - 1714) was an Italian

Italy

Baroque

Biography

There seems to be no proof that he belonged to the family of famous architects of the same name, which included Domenico Fontana

Domenico Fontana

Domenico Fontana was a Switzerland-born Italy architect of the late Renaissance.He was born at Melide, Switzerland on the Lake Lugano and died at Naples....
. Born in Brusato, near Como

Como

Como is a city in Lombardy, Italy, north of Milan. Situated at the southern tip of the south-west arm of Lake Como, it is the capital of the province of Como and directly borders the Switzerland town of Chiasso....
(now part of the town of Novazzano

Novazzano

Novazzano is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Mendrisio in the Cantons of Switzerland of Ticino in Switzerland....
in Canton Ticino, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland is a landlocked Swiss Alps country of roughly 7.7 million people in Western Europe with an area of 41,285 km?. Switzerland is a federal republic consisting of 26 states called Cantons of Switzerland....
), Fontana went to Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city, with 2,724,347 residents in an urban area of some ....
before 1655. He became a draghtsman for the architectural plans of Pietro da Cortona

Pietro da Cortona

Pietro da Cortona, byname of Pietro Berrettini was an Italian artist and architect of High Baroque. He is best known for painting fresco ceilings, a pursuit in which he had ample competition in the Rome of his day, but he was equally adept and masterful with architectural design....
, Carlo Rainaldi

Carlo Rainaldi

Carlo Rainaldi was an Italy architect of the Baroque period.Born in Rome, Rainaldi was one of the leading architects of 17th century Rome, known for a certain grandeur in his designs....
, and Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini was a pre-eminent Baroque sculpture and architect of 17th Century Rome....
. Bernini employed him for nearly a decade in diverse projects.

His first independent project may be the church of San Biagio in Campitelli, completed by 1665. His façade at San Marcello al Corso

San Marcello al Corso

San Marcello al Corso is a churches of Rome Rome, devoted to Pope Marcellus I. It is located in via del Corso, the ancient via Lata, connecting Piazza Venezia to Piazza del Popolo....
(1682-3) is described as one of his most successful works. For his patron, Innocent XI, he erected the immense building of the Istituto Apostolico San Michele at Ripa Grande, organized around its church; the baptismal chapel at St. Peter's

St. Peter's Basilica

The Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian language as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St. Peter's Basilica, is located within the Vatican City....
; and slightly modified and finished Palazzo Montecitorio

Palazzo Montecitorio

The Palazzo Montecitorio is a palace in Rome, which is currently the seat of the Italian Chamber of Deputies....
, which had been begun as Bernini's Palazzo Ludovisi, for Niccolò Ludovisi during the reign of the Ludovisi pope Gregory XV

Pope Gregory XV

Pope Gregory XV , born Alessandro Ludovisi, was pope from 1621, succeeding Pope Paul V on February 9, 1621....
, and which he publicized by a Discorso (1694).

At the request of Clement XI he built the public granaries (Olearie Papale) within the ruins of the Baths of Diocletian

Baths of Diocletian

The Baths of Diocletian in Ancient Rome were the grandest of the public baths, or thermae built by successive emperors. Diocletian's Baths, dedicated in 306, were the largest and most sumptuous of the imperial baths and remained in use until the aqueducts that fed them were cut by the Goths in 537....
(currently used for temporary exhibitions), the portico of Santa Maria in Trastevere

Trastevere

Trastevere is Rioni of Rome XIII of Rome, on the west bank of the Tiber, south of Vatican City. Its name comes from the Latin trans Tiberim, meaning literally "beyond the Tiber"....
, and the basin of the fountain of San Pietro in Montorio

San Pietro in Montorio

San Pietro in Montorio is a church in Rome, which includes in its courtyard The Tempietto built by Donato Bramante....
. He designed the Casanate library at Santa Maria sopra Minerva

Santa Maria sopra Minerva

Santa Maria sopra Minerva is a basilica churches of Rome Rome. The church, located in the Piazza della Minerva in the Campus Martius region, is considered the only Gothic architecture church in Rome, and is the city's principal Dominican Order church....
, designed the ribbed hemispherical dome for the duomo

Duomo

Duomo is a generic Italian language term for a cathedral church. The formal word for a church that is presently a cathedral is cattedrale; a Duomo may be either a present or a former cathedral ....
of Montefiascone

Montefiascone

Montefiascone is a town and comune of the province of Viterbo, Italy, located on a hill on the southeast side of Lake Bolsena, 113 km by rail northwest of Rome....
(completed long after his death) and the casino in the Vatican

Vatican City

Vatican City , officially the State of the Vatican City , is a Landlocked country sovereignty city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, the Capital of Italy....
, and collected all the models of the building.

Fontana mainly worked in Rome, assisted by his nephews Girolamo and Francesco Fontana (1668-1708), but he sent a model for the cathedral of Fulda

Fulda

Fulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the Fulda River and is the administrative seat of the Fulda ....
, and others to Vienna

Vienna

Vienna is the Capital of Republic of Austria and also one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.7 million...
for the royal stables. Among his other foreign works were the designs for a Jesuit monastery in Azpeitia

Azpeitia

Azpeitia is a town and municipality within the Provinces of Spain of Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country of Spain, located on the Urola River a few kilometers east of Azkoitia....
, Spain

Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
, in the village of Loyola where Saint Ignatius of Loyola

Ignatius of Loyola

Saint Ignatius of Loyola was the principal founder and first Superior General of the Society of Jesus.The compiler of the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola, Ignatius was described by Pope Benedict XVI as being above all a man of God, who gave the first place of his life to God, and a man of profound prayer....
, the founder of the Jesuit Order was born. This grandiose basilica

Basilica

The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a ancient Rome public building , usually located in the Forum of a Roman town. In Hellenistic cities, public basilicas appeared in the 2nd century BC....
was a major influence upon baroque architecture of the New World.

Fontana was an able artist and a good designer, but lacked the innovation that characterized early Baroque architects like Cortona and Borromini. In addition, he was more successful as an architect than as a writer. By order of Innocent XI he wrote a diffuse historical description of the Templum Vaticanum (1694), which included his project for completing St. Peter's. In this work Fontana advised the demolition of that dense nest of medieval houses called La Spina which formed a sort of island from Ponte Sant' Angelo to the piazza of St. Peter's; the project was completed under Mussolini

Benito Mussolini

Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini, Order of the Bath Sovereign Military Order of Malta Order of the Tower and Sword was an Italy politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
, creating the Via della Conciliazione
Via della Conciliazione

Via della Conciliazione is a street in the rione of Borgo within Rome. Roughly 500 m in length, it connects Saint Peter's Square to the Castel Sant'Angelo on the western bank of the Tiber....
. Fontana made a calculation of the whole expense of St. Peter's from the beginning to 1694, which amounted to 46,800,052 crowns, without including models. He also published works on the Colosseum

Colosseum

The Colosseum or Roman Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre , is an elliptical amphitheatre in the center of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire....
; the Aqueducts; the inundation of the Tiber

Tiber

The Tiber is the third-longest river in Italy, rising in the Apennine mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing 406 kilometres through Umbria and Lazio to the Tyrrhenian Sea....
, etc. Furthermore, twenty seven manuscript volumes of his writings and sketches are preserved in the Royal Library at Windsor

Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle, in Windsor, Berkshire in the England county of Berkshire, is the largest inhabited castle in the world and, dating back to the time of William I of England, is the oldest in continuous occupation....
.

Fontana was principe of the Accademia di San Luca

Accademia di San Luca

The Accademia di San Luca, was an association of artists in Rome, founded in 1593 with the directorship of Federico Zuccari, with the purpose of elevating the work of "artists" above that of craftsman....
in 1686 and 1692-1700. Fontana's studio was one of the most prolific in Europe; its designs for fountains, tombs, and altars were often imitated or reproduced abroad. Among Fontana's disciples, who spread his fame throughout Europe, were Giovanni Battista Vaccarini

Giovanni Battista Vaccarini

Giovanni Battista Vaccarini was a Sicily architect, notable for his work in the Baroque style in his homeland during the period of massive rebuilding following the earthquake of 1693....
in Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is an Autonomous regions with special statute of Italy. Of all the regions of Italy, Sicily covers the largest land area at 25,708 km? and currently has just over five million inhabitants....
, Filippo Juvarra

Filippo Juvarra

Filippo Juvarra, was an Italy architect and scene designer with a cosmopolitan outlook....
in Italy

Italy

Spain

James Gibbs

James Gibbs was one of Kingdom of Great Britain's most influential architects. Born in Kingdom of Scotland, he trained as an architect in Rome, and practised mainly in England....
in England

England

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
, Johann Lucas von Hildebrandt and Fischer von Erlach in Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It borders both Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west....
, and Nicola Michetti in Italy

Italy

Russia

Russia , or the Russian Federation , is a list of countries spanning more than one continent country extending over much of northern Eurasia....
. Other Fontana pupils include Giovan Battista Contini and Carlo Francesco Bizzacheri.

Works in Rome

*Palazzo Giustiniani. Rebuilding and refurbishing, with Francesco Borromini

Francesco Borromini

Francesco Borromini, byname of Francesco Castelli was a prominent and influential Italy Swiss born Baroque architect in Rome....
and others

Palazzo Montecitorio
Palazzo Montecitorio

The Palazzo Montecitorio is a palace in Rome, which is currently the seat of the Italian Chamber of Deputies....
(1694–97); the headquarters of the Camera dei Deputati of the Italian government since 1871.
Façade of the church of San Marcello al Corso
San Marcello al Corso

San Marcello al Corso is a churches of Rome Rome, devoted to Pope Marcellus I. It is located in via del Corso, the ancient via Lata, connecting Piazza Venezia to Piazza del Popolo....
(1682-1683). The slightly concave façade with the emphatic portico, the masterfully rhythmic use of Corinthian columns and pilasters
Corinthian order

The Corinthian order is one of the Classical orders of Greece and Rome architecture, characterized by a slender Fluting column and an ornate capital decorated with acanthus leaves and scrolls....
, the subtle integration of upper and lower storeys and the independent counterpoint of friezes and cornices all exemplify Fontana's youthful manner, working in the organic Baroque that would be replaced by his later restrained academic Baroque. The conventional scrolls that ordinarily flank the upper central section are appropriately replaced with the martyr's palms.
Church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli, in collaboration with Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Gian Lorenzo Bernini

Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini was a pre-eminent Baroque sculpture and architect of 17th Century Rome....
(1662-1679).
Church of San Biagio in Campitelli (1655).
Basilica di San Clemente
Basilica di San Clemente

The Basilica of Saint Clement is a twelfth century Roman Catholic Church minor basilica dedicated to Pope Clement I located in Rome, Italy. Archaeologically speaking it is a three-tiered complex of buildings on the site, the lowermost notable as being an archaeological record of a first century insulae belonging to T....
, 1713–19. Restorations.
Interior of Basilica dei Santi Apostoli (1702-1708).
The fountain in the left of the Piazza San Pietro (1675).
The fountain in front of Santa Maria in Trastevere
Santa Maria in Trastevere

The Basilica of Our Lady's in Trastevere is a titular minor basilica, one of the oldest Churches of Rome Rome, perhaps the first in which mass was openly celebrated....
, one of the oldest fountains of Rome, was restored
Art conservation and restoration

Conservation-restoration, also referred to as Conservation, is a profession devoted to the preservation of cultural heritage for the future. Conservation activities include examination, documentation, treatment, and preventive care....
by Fontana
The cupola of the Cibo Chapel in Santa Maria del Popolo
Santa Maria del Popolo

Santa Maria del Popolo is a notable Augustinian church located in Rome.It stands to the north side of the Piazza del Popolo, one of the most famous squares of the city, between the ancient Porta Flaminia and the Pincio park....
(1683-1687).
Sistine Chapel in Santa Maria Maggiore
Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore

The Basilica of Saint Mary Major , is an Ancient Rome Roman Catholic Church basilica of Rome. It is one of the Basilica#The major basilicas or Basilica#Papal and patriarchal basilicas in Rome, which, together with Basilica di San Lorenzo fuori le Mura, were formerly referred to as the five "patriarchal basilicas" of Rome, associated with the...
(1671).
Ginetti Chapel in Sant'Andrea della Valle
Sant'Andrea della Valle

Sant'Andrea della Valle is a basilica churches of Rome Rome, in the rione of Sant'Eustachio ....
(1671).
Albani Chapel in San Sebastiano fuori le mura
San Sebastiano fuori le mura

San Sebastiano fuori le mura , or San Sebastiano ad Catacumbas , is a basilica in Rome. Up to the Great Jubilee of 2000, San Sebastiano was one of the Seven Pilgrim Churches of Rome, but many pilgrims still favor the traditional list....
(1705).
Biblioteca Casanatense at Santa Maria sopra Minerva
Santa Maria sopra Minerva

Santa Maria sopra Minerva is a basilica churches of Rome Rome. The church, located in the Piazza della Minerva in the Campus Martius region, is considered the only Gothic architecture church in Rome, and is the city's principal Dominican Order church....
(1708). Fontana's magnificent salone houses the library that was donated by Cardinal Casanate in 1698. The library was opened in 1725 .
The great complex of San Michele a Ripa, with Mattia de' Rossi. The Chiesa Grande dates from 1706.
Baptismal font, St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica

The Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian language as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St. Peter's Basilica, is located within the Vatican City....
(1692-1698).
The tombs of Popes Clement XI and Innocent XII.
The tomb of Queen Christina of Sweden
Christina of Sweden

Christina , later known as Christina Alexandra and sometimes Countess Dohna, was Monarch of Sweden of Sweden from 1632 to 1654. She was the only surviving legitimate child of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden and his wife Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg....
in St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica

The Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian language as the Basilica di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as St. Peter's Basilica, is located within the Vatican City....
(1702).
Villa Cetinale
Villa Cetinale

Villa Cetinale is a 17th century villa in Tuscany, Italy, located about in the hamlet of Cetinale near Sovicille and about 12 km west of Siena....
in Tuscany
Tuscany

Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of and a population of about 3.6 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence.Tuscany is known for its landscapes and its artistic legacy....
.