Architect: Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola; born 1507, died 1573. His career illustrates the rigidity of Mannerist art in the later half of 16th century. His design of Il Gesu meant that Jesuit missionaries carried copies of his design all over the world. His first major work was the villa (Rome) built for Pope Julius III, but Il Gesu was the most influential, although considered architecturally less adventurous. Vignola published his own treatise, Regola delli Clinque Ordini d'Architettura in 1562. It became the standard textbook for architectural students, mainly in France, for about three centuries and nearly two hundred editions of it are known. Towards the end of his life, he built a gateway for the Farnese Gardens in Rome. The gateway was demolished in 1880, but stones were preserved and it has been rebuilt.Builder: Giovanni TristanoConstruction Date: began 1958 (factual).Resource type: ChurchStyle/Culture: Italian RenaissanceDescription and Features: Il Gesu displays a tunnel-vaulted nave (about 60 feet wide) and has four chapels on each side. The end walls are aligned with the outer walls of the chapels. The tunnel vault rises above the cornice that runs from the faade to the piers of the crossing. Due to the faade windows and the lunettes of the tunnel-vault, the nave is brightly lit, but in contrast, the chapels are dim. The diameter of the dome is equal to the width of the nave. Vignola accomplished this by having the chapels in the form of a continuous row into the piers of the crossing. The dome seemed to rest on surrounding walls, not on the three dimensional piers. The small chapels formed a passage in-between the nave and the transept. Original Use: Il Gesu is the Roman mother-church of the Jesuit OrderConstruction History: On June 26, 1568 the foundation stone was laid out, although it took years to finally decide on its situation, shape and size. Nanni di Baccio Bigi had submitted a design for the church ...
