June 4 - Thirty-first day in Italy, first day in Venice, we walked as a group to Piazza San Marco where we were given a tour of the Doge's Palace and of the Basilica di San Marco. After the tour we were dismissed to explore until we met up at Punta della Salute via Ponte dell'Accademia to sketch views of San Marco, Doge's Palace, San Giorgio Maggiore, and II Redentore from across the lagoon.

My Presentation on San Giorgio Maggiore

Today we are visiting the San Giorgio Maggiore Church. While we have been in Venice, we have seen many incredible works of architecture, and many have come from the designs and ideas of Andrea Palladio. This church is another one of his designs and is considered his most remarkable design built in the 16th century. It showcases Palladio’s skills and his use of the Renaissance and classical style during this time period. The church rests on a small island, as we can see, which is named after the church, The San Giorgio Maggiore Island. The island and church are located across the water from the Piazza San Marco. The church is a blend of Renaissance and classical design and is considered one of Palladio’s most outstanding achievements. Palladio’s style was influenced heavily by the classical architecture of the ancient Romans and Greeks. With the influence of these two styles, including columns, pediments, and other classical features, his designs were elegant, simple, and balanced. His view of architecture was that it should be functional, beautiful, and aesthetically pleasing. Palladio believed that the purpose of architecture should have a clear intention to help us be better people. He imagined architecture as a way to encourage good states of mind in ourselves and others. His architecture strived to incorporate three psychological virtues: calmness, harmony, and dignity. His designs were centered, balanced, and symmetrical to achieve these aspects. He used simple geometric shapes with little to no extra detail. Palladio’s designs were meant to have a sense of serenity and simplicity. He believed every element of a building should fit perfectly with every other. Andrea Palladio said, “A fine building ought to appear as an entire and perfect body, wherein every member agrees with its fellow, and each so well with the whole, that it may seem absolutely necessary.” By implementing these architectural ideas, Palladio designed all his buildings with this intent. His work has significantly and positively impacted Venice, its people, and the world’s architectural community. His buildings are a testament to his skill and view as an architect. To this day, his work, style, and values continue to be modeled and referenced.

The San Giorgio Maggiore church is located on its own island, which is one of the most iconic features of the church. With the church being intentionally placed across from the Piazza San Marco, it is meant to be viewed from across the water, where it extravagantly showcases Venice’s wealth, beauty, and power. The distance to the island church is easily accessible today. Yet however, this distance was once difficult enough to make the island a retreat from the city. It was considered by many to be a shelter, haven, gathering space, and even a secure home. The location of the San Giorgio Maggiore church on the island makes it stand out, with the Venetian skyline and other buildings creating a backdrop for the church. Through Palladio’s study of the waterways in Venice, the specific placement and orientation of the San Giorgio Maggiore allow for the church to be a centerpiece of the urban setting. As we visit the San Giorgio Maggiore Church, we travel by boat and can experience the full wonder of the church from start to finish. The site placement of this church allows for a framing view of the church from within the city, which creates, in turn, a long processional journey to the entrance when visiting. By traveling through the narrow dark streets of Venice into the canal, the shimmering open water and brilliant white façade of the San Giorgio Maggiore create a dramatic and impressive approach to the church. The architecture of the façade provides continuity with the architecture of the Piazza, from which we will embark by boat to the church. Approaching the island, the church is a magnificent site rising above the surrounding buildings and trees, with the stunning façade and dome being the highlight of the journey and the initial experience of the church.

The architecture of the San Giorgio Maggiore displays its high social status, and Palladio accomplished this by creating an imposing façade and a grand interior. In addition, Palladio had to be aware of Benedictine requirements and traditions for the space. To accommodate the unique restrictions, Palladio designed the church to reflect the ancient Greek and Roman architecture. These two classical styles and the considerate design of the San Giorgio Maggiore cause the church to be symmetrical and historical. Palladio adopted a longitudinal plan with an intersecting transept to form the shape of a cross which is also called a cruciform plan. This plan was typical in the Renaissance style and is notable for the clarity and geometry of its organization. The groin-vaulted aisles are distinguished from the barrel-vaulted nave and transept by their lower height and different vaulting systems, which help draw attention to the church’s cruciform shape and emphasize the dome in the center. Palladio created the effect of a centrally planned church. By maintaining an impression of centrality while adhering to the rectangular plan dictated by liturgical practice, Palladio succeeded in combining two different planning systems into a cohesive whole. Palladio wrote, “the worshipper can see before his eyes the tree on which our savior hung. This is the form in which I built the church of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice.”

The most spectacular part, and considered the most memorable, is the façade of the San Giorgio Maggiore church. Palladio designed the façade of two classical temple fronts, one superimposed upon the other. The proportions of the facade are obtained by raising the principal Composite order on a pedestal and designing the minor Corinthian order without one. The white façade design is accomplished through the use of Istrian stone, which Palladio believed to be the most appropriate color for a church, as it represented purity and hence was more pleasing to God. The façade is divided into three sections adorned with classical columns, arches, pediments, and pilasters. Through the design of the façade using an architectural order, Palladio was able to link a high nave to lower side aisles or side chapels. The central part features four giant half-columns of the Composite order supporting a large entablature and pediment with sculptures, including one of Saint George slaying the dragon. The two flanking sections are decorated with smaller Corinthian columns and pilasters with niches filled with urns and busts of eminent senators flanked by pilasters with pediments. The central doorway is only open up to the impost, and the semicircular portion is left solid above the doorway. The variety of aspects in the façade communicates different effects, either of pleasantness and beauty, or of grandeur and severity.

With this extraordinary and unique design of the exterior façade, you would expect the interior to be just as beautiful, and you would be correct as the interior echoes the exterior and is just as magnificent. The church consists of a cruciform plan with a large nave flanked by two side aisles separated from the nave by piers and giant Composite half-columns on pedestal bases. The plan consists of a forty-foot-wide nave and aisles half that length in width. The length of the nave up to the crossing is twice the size of the width. The crossing is a perfect square centered between the entrance and the altar and the hemisphere-domed space above. The dome in the center is constructed internally of brick and externally of timber and lead. The dome emphasizes the crossing and gives approximately equal depth to the transept. The piers further emphasize the separation of these units along the sides of the nave, which is lacking in the aisles. The center area under the dome is intersected by vaults of equal width on each of its four sides. The church’s transept includes two side arms terminating in semi-circular apses and a deep arm behind the altar locating the choir that terminates in a semi-circular apse, giving it a sense of elegance and beauty. At the end of the nave is the high altar, which has stunning artwork by Tintoretto, consisting of some of his most well-known paintings, including the Last Supper and the Entombment of Christ. The altar is an emphasized design, including double-stacked columns with a pediment. The altar also includes a presbytery in front of it; when viewed from the nave, however, the presbytery is raised up on a small flight of steps, giving visual importance and authority to the high altar. Behind the altar is the choir, separated from the rest of the church by a screen of columns. Here Palladio considered acoustical design and chose to use a barrel-vaulted ceiling for the central space of the choir to better project the choir’s sound into the church’s nave. The use of huge thermal windows allows for natural light to flood the room, creating a phenomenal effect and a sense of holiness, causing the interior space to feel open and bright. All in all, the main space of the church is unusually clear, harmonious, and bright: clear because the contrast of gray stone columns, pilasters, and arches with white stucco walls and vaults enables one to grasp the structure of the building at a glance; harmonious, because of Palladio’s well-known sensitivity to proportions; and bright because of the numerous large windows.

The San Giorgio Maggiore Church is a fantastic work of architecture showcasing the Renaissance style and ideas of the time period. The church represents a remarkable achievement for which Palladio has rightly been celebrated. His ability to respond to multiple needs, sensitivity to the site’s unique character, and ingenious solutions to architectural problems make the San Giorgio Maggiore Church stand out from all his other works. Furthermore, Palladio’s use of symmetry and classical design make this church an extraordinary building and experience like no other.

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June 5 - Thirty-second day, day two in Venice, we took a boat to the island of Murano to take a tour of the glass blowing and technique of making glass sculptures. After the tour we took the boat to the island of Burano to explore the small colorful city. After spending the morning at both of the islands we were dismissed for the day to explore where we went to the Rialto Bridge on our walk back to the hotel.

June 6 - Day thirty-three, last day in Venice, we walked as a group to Fondazione Querini Stampalia. After we had lunch before heading to Ca D'oro to explore the museum there. Then our last stop for the day was the Olivetti Showroom where we were given a tour. To end the day we had a farewell dinner for the trip.

June 7 - Woke up super early to catch a boat and then a bus to the Venice airport where we left Italy.