DIAGRAMS AND PHOTOS Tavernor, R. (1998). On Alberti and the art of building. New Haven: Yale of the church and directs movement towards the altar
phant,” intelligible harmony which binds a manifold of
The hierarchy of Sant’ Andrea is divisible by
(Tavernor 180-2).
relations in a perfect world” (Gadol 140).
the rule of three. The progression in the order of:
7. Limited inventory of parts
8. Inherent formal hierarchies
This type of organization leads the eye from the elevat-
University Press.
I. Portico II. Nave III. Altar Alberti’s arrangement of elements creates a
There is a close relationship in forms from the
ed, masonry organism to its majestic interior of arches
harmonious design using simple geometries and ratios
exterior to the interior. The development of the trium-
and dimension. Alberti’s ideas on perspective focus all
that are echoed through the church. Ratios and propor-
phal arch motif, first seen in the great triumphal arch in
accent on the longitudinal progression of journey with-
tions of forms in the facade reappear in the interior. For
the facade, is continued inside (Borsi 274). Looking at
in the church.
instance the two pilasters that run along the facade and
Figure 2.1, the plan to section relationship underlies a
carry the entablature, is repeated in the same way on
similar organization of forms, proportion, and geom-
the interior.
etry. The longitudinal order of both the plan and section
The construction process of the Mantua
Arches, rectangles and circles are used in a myriad of siz-
align as it is about as wide as its height. The dome, cen-
church spanned close to 300 years causing a discrep-
es and positions. This is evident in the rectangular door-
tered above the crossing, mirrors the form of the tran-
ancy in whether Alberti planned Sant’ Andrea as a Latin
ways that are set into the arched walls of the church.
septs on both sides of the nave in the plan to section
cross or in the form of a basilica. As it stands today, Sant’
The circular windows are reflective of the arch and the
alignment.
Andrea, consists of a 6:5 ratio of length to width. The
circular form of the dome. According to Gadol, Alberti sought, “a lucid impression of unity in diversity, a “trium-
10. Regularity
nave, tribunalia, and open chapels are alternated with 9. Tripartite organization: the rule of three
smaller chapels, or cellae combine to form the modular lengths of 6 elements of the width (Borsi 232).
GROUP THREE 5