by Angela Marino
In 1949, Cesare
Brandi travelled all over Italy and visited the still almost unknown
Southern regions. He was like a pilgrim in his own country. He intended
to carry out an intellectual on-field initiative vowed at entering directly
in contact with the architectural and figurative reality. Today this
is probably the feature that most characterizes the new generation training
of specialized operators. We believe that anyone who has seen different
realities and is capable to give critical comparisons as well as to
highlight the differences and links between them, has acquired a truly
unique cognitive experience - a background where knowledges such as
philology, technology and chemistry should flourish. Brandi has experienced
the itinerary of the Baroque Noto. He registered his impressions with
an accurate sensitiveness that succeeded in finding the links, relations,
reasons that no research had scientifically observed yet…
A few remarks came out from the visit we made to some building yards
in Noto, in occasion of the 7th International Course on the History
of Architecture (2001) in Syracuse…
The golden colour of Noto, which owes its fame to the 19th-20th century
literature, conquered everybody. But which epoch does it really pertain
to? And what does the colour hide? We would like to open a debate at
this regard. Many recent Italian studies have pointed out the problem
of surface finishing. They develop a new approach, much different from
an inattentive look and past arbitrary choices. This is one of the issues
we intend to point out.
Now a doubt is emerging as to the “primary value” of the
colour that has been selected, since it is the oldest layer ever found.
As a matter of fact no historical-documentary survey has ever been carried
out. So, set aside the legitimate conviction on the “necessity”
to rebuild, one may ask: is this first layer, which is only partially
visible, actually the “primary” one? Or is it rather the
outcome of today’s choices merely willing to confirm famous travellers’
impressions and surveys dating back to a century or at least half a
century. The technical and chemical analysis should be crossed with
the documentary and philological one.
Actually we know very little about Sicilian building techniques and,
in particular, about surface finishing techniques. However a few assessed
discoveries indeed suggest that there exist a figurative culture. But
this reality has to emerge yet…
