Piranesi on Architecture: Argument and Summary Giovanni

Piranesi on Architecture:

Argument and Summary

Giovanni Battista Piranesi, a fantastic writer on Roman architecture, argues, against the contemporaries of his time, for this type of architecture. Such contemporaries would state, on Roman architecture, that "there is no composition that is not full of superfluous ornament, and absolutely hors d'oeuvre. Everything is sacrificed for luxury, and in the end one is left with style that quickly becomes ridiculous and barbarous."[footnoteRef:1] However, Piranesi sticks with his taste, and proves, through a dialogue written by the critic himself, the importance of Roman architecture. Thus, this paper will give a brief summary of the afore-mentioned dialogue and the argument presented. [1: Source given by customer -- Thoughts on Architecture by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Translation by Michaels Nonis and Mark Epstein) ]

The essay presented in this document is called Parere su l'architectura, and provide a clear exposition of the author's thoughts on "ornament and quotation."[footnoteRef:2] According to a paper written about this brief essay, the dialogue presented is between Protopiro, who is meant to be representative of the traditions of Laugier and Winckelmann. The other man is Didascalo, who is supposed to represent the voice of Piranesi himself. According to this same introduction, "Didascalo reduces ad absurdum Protopiro's argument in favor of the Vitruvian principles of law, reason and simplicity and demonstrates that its logical conclusion is an architecture of monotony, devoid of any artistic originality."[footnoteRef:3] [2: Source given by customer -- Thoughts on Architecture by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Translation by Michaels Nonis and Mark Epstein) ] [3: Source given by customer -- Thoughts on Architecture by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Translation by Michaels Nonis and Mark Epstein) ]

According to both this brief introduction and the subsequent world of Didascalo, the above characterized impression is completely true. The "devoid of artistic originality" is exemplified in such quotations as:

"Tell me, please, what are [Greek] columns supposed to represent? According to Vitruvius, they originate from the forked sticks placed at the corner of the huts; according to other, they are the trunks that support the roof. And what is the meaning of the flutes? Vitruvius thinks that they represent the pleats in the robes of Roman matrons. This means that the columns do not imitate forked sticks or trees but rather women supporting a roof."[footnoteRef:4] [4: Source given by customer -- Thoughts on Architecture by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Translation by Michaels Nonis and Mark Epstein) ]