|
 The
word ‘Liberty’ was used in Italy to indicate that kind
of floral style better known with the French ‘Art
Nouveau’, the style that influenced the architecture and
the art of Europe at the beginning of twentieth-century.
The typical motif of Liberty style is the curved line
that seems to spring to life and 'grow' into
plant-derived forms.
In Grottammare, like in
other places of the nearby coast, Liberty Style
expressed itself mainly into sea-houses architecture,
built by well-off families that choose the celebrated
Grottammare as a place for their summer stay. The most
recurring elements are turrets with balcony, steep
slopes, frescos and majolica with flower decorations.
The most of the villas
are situated along Viale Colombo (ex Viale Marino), the
northern promenade. It has been recently renovated into
a Carrara white marble and porphyry pavement, adorned
with as many luxuriant palms as its length.
Moving southwards along
Viale Colombo you find the following: the Pompeian-red
painted ‘Villa Marucchi’, ‘Villino Alessandrini’, an
example of mountain architecture transposed along the
seaside, ‘Villino Ida’, ‘Villino Ornella’ and the better
known ‘Villino Matricardi-Cola’, designed in 1913
and symbol of the Liberty époque of Grottammare. Its
masterpieces are the elegant brackets under the
moulding, the belvedere with its sinuous frescoed
columns and the majolicas on every face.
Going on along
‘Lungomare della Repubblica’ you will find ‘Villino De
Nardis–Palombari’ with its simple and elegant lines, one
of the first sea-houses of Grottammare, ‘Villino Monti’
inspired by the typical alpine-style cottage, ‘Villino
Pontremoli-Modigliani’ and ‘Villino Flaiani’, both of
them with a typical turret with balcony.
Finally you could find other examples of architecture in
Liberty Style inside the town: ‘Villino Ricci’ in Viale
Garibaldi and the stately ‘Palace of the Primary School’
with its jutting mouldings and the decorated lunettes of
its double lancet windows.
Did you know? The tower
of ‘Villino Matricardi-Cola’ has been chosen as the logo
of the Tourist Operator Association Grottammare. |
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