Villa Contarini

History

The main building (Villa padronale) was begun in 1546 under commission by the Venetian patricians Paolo and Francesco Contarini. It appears to have been built on the plinth of an older fortress like structure. While some documents claim the original design was by Andrea Palladio, this attribution is controversial. This core of the villa has a facade, oddly out of place in this open space, resembling a Gothic canal facade in Venice. The more elaborate flanking wings were commissioned by Marco Contarini between 1671 and 1676 extended the 16th century layout, building two large loggia wings at the sides of the previous main building, which are decorated with numerous telamon sculptures, extruding from the second story pilasters. The ground floor is more rusticated. The eastern wing was completed by the 17th century, but work on the western wing continued until 1900. The interiors of the west wing, however, were frescoed in 1684 by Michele Primon. The detached Neoclassical chapel in front of the main villa was designed by Tommaso Temanza. Finally, the villa links up across the street with a large porticoed hemicycle, only half-completed. It is evident in the layout of the complex drawn by Muttoni in 1760. This piazza, known as Anfiteatro Camerini is now commonly used for large outdoor concerts.

In his description of the glory days of Venetian villas, Pompeo Molmenti mentions Villa Piazzola: …