SAN VITO D'ALTIVOLE (Treviso) - BRION TOMB AND SANCTUARY
Carlo Scarpa
"Una persona era morta, in Italia, la famiglia voleva onorare il merito di un uomo venuto dal popolo, noi diciamo "dalla gavetta" e che, col suo lavoro, era diventato una persona importante.[...] A me bastavano cento metri quadrati, invece sono duemila e duecento metri quadri."
With these words Carlo Scarpa introduces us to the design story of Brion monumental complex.
A sloping wall bounds the entire area, the complex has two entrances, one facing directly onto the street and another one located inside the cemetery that faces two large intersecting circles, that symbolize the union of Giuseppe and Onorina Brion.
From these two entrances, two different pathways reach to the Brion spouses’ tomb, the fulcrum of the whole monumental complex. It’s composed by two graves, inclined toward each other, reflecting the emotional bond that characterized the entire life of two spouses.
The graves rises under an arch made of concrete (the main project's material), called “arcosolium” which ceiling is decorated with coloured mosaic, typical element of the venetian tradition.
Before reaching the “arcosolium”, the visitor who came from the street bump into the church - which is almost submerged in water and 45° rotated compared to the other elements’ orientation - then the burial of other family and, after the tombs of the spouses, finally the pavilion of meditation which stands on water and it’s built in metal and wood. This pavilion is the only section of the entire monument not accessible by the visitors and bounded by a glass door. This door opens going down into the pathway through a pulley system set on the other side of the wall. Pulleys are placed as costellation’s stars.
On a little corner of the entire complex, there's Carlo scarpa's grave, designed by his son Tobia Scarpa
San Vito d' Altivole, 2014
