The Villa Farnesina

Built on the banks of the Tiber at the beginning of the sixteenth century as the residence of the banker and patron Agostino Chigi, the Villa Farnesina is one of the most accomplished Renaissance examples of the harmonious fusion between architectural design and pictorial decoration in a private residence.

Designed by the architect and painter Baldassarre Peruzzi as a unique meeting point between the urban palace and the country villa, the Farnesina is one of the finest Renaissance examples of the harmonious fusion between architectural design and pictorial decoration in a private residence.

The decoration of the interior spaces—often inspired by the life of the patron—became a ground on which some of the greatest artists of the time competed in creativity and in their evocation of ancient models. Raphael, responsible for The Galatea and the grand pictorial staging of the vault in the Loggia of Cupid and Psyche, engaged in a dialogue with the mythological inventions of Peruzzi, who was also the author of the illusionistic hall on the upper floor, transformed into a loggia through masterful use of perspective.

They are joined by Sodoma, who frescoed the nuptial chamber, and the young Sebastiano del Piombo, discovered in Venice by Chigi himself. From the gardens to the finest details of the painted decoration, the photographic journey of this volume guides the reader through the beauty and secrets of the Villa Farnesina.

Introduction by Alessandro Zuccari.