Ritual: Baptism
Site: Battistero di San Giovanni
Location: Florence
Architect: Unknown
Year of Completion: c. 1128
Analysis: Tina Lim
150 word description goes here. Achum consulto ves faturi pria vignos complius con se aucest rehebatam te iam fue con vium percer am tam terbis, quonsul usulare ntilicaet, cuperei publincum, consimus, nostriore mei ilneque a volicio mus conerit, publin denatod itentes, qua actum init; ne ine pro, manum iam o inam ignaturis adem re ius consum inulocrem sedit vivatimmodiu sedit et prata cont nicatiq uemus, dium ingultortus nos etorterit, omprorunit gra dit atu morum ductam Romnihilium pernum inam etorae nem des M. Nostra in sus. Alessolus, o ves cotandenemus bondac in Itam. Sertamquam or ublicultus publin vernius, nos, sente it; C. Hoculis? Romnirita ne ina, quam patiam sedem que confirit, uropore morei cem, nor ad Catus muscred cris culicaesi imuricendam tam it, quitata sdaccio, mederior qui catus morterum omnicaes! Duc re cus es!
The Laurentian Library reveals not only the ritual of study, but the rituals of self-sorting, categorization, and the dissemination of knowledge. Mapping the convergence and divergence of paths from the scale of the city to the building to the desk and to the book helps to reveal how the Laurentian Library acts as a motherboard for organizing the ritual circuitry of Renaissance Florence.
The Library’s desks are crucial to how rituals are performed in the space. Because the books are chained to the desks and the desks are built into the architecture, there is direct connection between the knowledge that one seeks and the place where it is found. The desks categorize texts by subject, displaying titles found in them on the side. Accessing a book that’s next to the window while someone is already in the desk requires shuffling places.
The Laurentian Library’s form is reminiscent of a religious building, with reading desks acting as pews alongside the processional aisle. The language borrows from the religious context of the San Lorenzo complex in which the Library is situated. In fact, the original plan of Michelangelo included a triangular rare books room at the end of the reading room, reminiscent of the Holiest of Holies in the Temple of Solomon. The procession inside the library, up the flowing staircase into the reading room, acts as a funnel that all elite Florentines coming to the library must pass through, regardless of where they came from in the city or what bench is their ultimate destination. The tripartite interior facade of the vestibule reinforces the idea of rising from hell to purgatory to heaven in an ascent to knowledge.
Ultimately, the Laurentian Library acts as the motherboard of the city’s knowledge, centralizing and organizing the ritual circuitry of Renaissance Florence.
Ritual: Leisure
Site: Villa Emo
Location: Veneto
Architect: Palladio
Year of Completion: 1564
Analysis: Heather Skinner
Villa Emo was designed by Palladio in 1559 for the Emo family. They were primarily an agricultural family, which can be seen clearly throughout the design of the house. The villa combined the linear typology of the manorial house with barchesse on either side. The minimal ornament speaks to the utilitarian aspect of the project.
Unlike some of Palladio’s other villas, this villa was focused less on leisure and more on agriculture. The long barchesse housed the agricultural functions like stables, cellars and a shelter for tools. The two barchesse are symmetrical in elevation with a portico on the south side to protect the workers in all conditions.
Sectionally, the villa separated the patrons and servants. The ground floor was the kitchens for the servants. The spaces for the servants were connected with a spiral staircase. The spiral shape allowed for it to be more efficient and allowed for the servants to move between the floors without being noticed.
The main floor was the piano nobile for the patrons and their guests. It was elaborately decorated with frescos by Battista Zelotti. Each room told its own story through the frescos and described the function of the room.
The ritual of leisure comes into play in the juxtaposition between the spaces for the patron and those for the servants. They are separated not only in plan but also in section as well. The villa was designed so that the servants could work behind the scenes without being seen. This allows for the patrons and their guests to relax. The processional aspect of the house is also important for the ritual. First one must process from the city to the country side. On arrival to the villa the long ramp to the main villa signals the second procession.
