Exterior view
by CORTONA, Pietro da, Photo
In 1656 Cortona was commissioned to renovate the fa�ade of the Quattrocento church of Santa Maria della Pace and to construct a square in front of it. The broad sweep of this fa�ade contrasts with the convex curve of the porch with piers which occupies the entire breadth of the original church fa�ade. Here Bramante’s Tempietto is combined with Palladio’s stage from the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza. The separation of the fa�ade from the church structure is impressive, and the design of this format was new for its time. The fa�ade was no longer a boundary, it now became an independent plastic entity designed specifically for its context.
The picture shows the fa�ade of the church.