Alessandro Antonelli

Da sempre la storiografia antonelliana ha posto al centro della propria attenzione la Mole. Meno indagati, tuttavia, sono i processi decisionali e le ragioni che portarono il Municipio di Torino a sostenerne la costruzione quando l’edificio ancora apparteneva alla comunità israelitica e successivamente, dopo il 1877, quando la Città ne pervenne infine in possesso.
La costruzione della Mole Antonelliana costituisce infatti un momento fondamentale nel processo di definizione dei caratteri identitari della città contemporanea e della sua immagine, ma anche un banco di prova straordinariamente impegnativo, dove viene concretamente vagliata la cultura della convivenza e della tolleranza nella città postunitaria.

German Text:
Physics in relation to historical architecture includes not only “building physics”,meaning the handling of light during the design process, for example, but also the “statics” of a constructional design. It is no coin-
cidence therefore, in the argument of this contribution, that precisely those architects and builders, who were deeply concerned with the lightness of their stone constructions, found new ways of exploiting
daylight. In principle, there remain constructional approaches which are still valid today and can serve as criteria for the contemporary handling of daylight. Three architects from different periods will be presented with their exemplary works and their lighting concepts will be interpreted. Mimar Sinan (1489–1588) achieved a room transparency unique in Islamic architecture through sophisticated statics and a high ratio of windows. Alessandro Antonelli (1798–1888) created bold vaulted constructions. His high domes were look-out towers which led the visitors upwards along the construction and amidst a dramatic play of light and shade, closeness and openness. His domestic architecture also yielded new lighting concepts. Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926) developed new building types with an optimal indoor climate. Reflecting, translucent and refracting surfaces exploited daylight to a high degree and provided ventilation devices. Curved surfaces created unique lighting effects. In doing so, he used the new geometry of regulus in his later works.

Architectural innovation in Germany and Italy before 1848: Gottfried Semper and Alessandro Antonelli.

Abstract
This essay is originally an invited paper at the conference Gottfried Semper – Dresden und Europa: Die moderne Renaissance der Künste (Dresden 2003) and compares two designs for public spaces in mid 19th century – the Zwinger project of Gottfried Semper in Dresden and the designs of Alessandro Antonelli for the piazza Castello in Turin.

S. Monferrini, Il notaio Costanzo Antonelli e i suoi figli, in "Alessandro Antonelli. Contributi nel bicentenario della nascita 1798-1998", pp. 18-43

Racconta le vicende del padre del celebre architetto ghemmese Alessandro Antonelli e della sua famiglia