The relentless uniformity of the bays of the south facade of the Escorial continue… June 3, 2008
Posted by dodo in : Austria, Europe, Library, USA , add a commentThe church itself is a central-plan building focusing on four great piers that support a hemispherical crossing dome. The general scheme of the interior follows the example of St Peter’s in Rome, but the architect has transposed the details into a solemnly majestic key, his personal interpretation of the Doric order. The enormous scale, the relative absence of ornament and the unrelenting austerity of the granite surfaces produce an awesome, almost suffocating effect. Fortunately this tension is relieved by the presence of a number of outstanding works of art, which act as aesthetic oases, so to speak. The east wall is entirely filled by a great retable designed by Giacomo Trezzo of Milan, incorporating paintings by Pellegrino Tibaldi and Federico Zuccaro and sculpture by Leone and Pompeo Leoni. (more…)
The relentless uniformity of the bays of the south facade of the Escorial June 3, 2008
Posted by dodo in : England, Mexico, Paris, Peru , add a commentBecause of unforeseen expense and changes in taste, the construction of many great palaces lasted for several generations. Our view of them must therefore take into account the various phases of history that they reflect. This is not true of the Escorial. This enormous building, at once monastery, palace and mausoleum, rose in fulfilment of a vow made by Philip II, the greatest monarch of his age; it was completed 14 years before his death exactly as he intended.
On August 10, 1557, St Laurence’s day, Philip’s generals won a great victory over the French at Saint-Quentin in Picardy. Philip’s father, Charles V (who had abdicated a short time before to retire to his hermitage at Yuste), sent a message to his son asking if he had occupied Paris. (more…)
