The Università Cattolica and the monastery of Sant'Ambrogio

  • Edited by Marco Rossi, Alessandro Rovetta
  • Binding Hardcover
  • Size 19 x 27 cm
  • Pages 192
  • Illustrations 150
  • Language Italian, English
  • Year 2020
  • ISBN 9788836644490
  • Price € 30,00
  •   Not available
Abstract

This book expands on an important chapter of Milanese history, art and architecture that revolves around the Cistercian monastery of Sant'Ambrogio and its transformation into the seat of the Università Cattolica. The essays herein retrace the events surrounding the coenobium, starting with the impressive restoration works set in motion in 1497 by Donato Bramante, with his design for the famous cloisters that marked a turning point in his career as an architect, before focusing on the developments in the monastery's construction and ornamentation throughout the modern age.
When the Università Cattolica - at the strong urging of its founder, Father Agostino Gemelli - purchased the ancient monastery, it became the focus of a vast project of restoration, expansion and change of use, led primarily, between 1928 and 1949, by Giovanni Muzio and Pier Fausto Barelli.
The spaces, which are deeply marked by Father Gemelli's humanistic and religious spirit, have been further enhanced over the years with an important collection of works of art, confirming the University's dedication and commitment to maintaining a constant dialogue with the contemporary world.

Contents

Sant’Ambrogio and its monastery in modern times
Danilo Zardin

Ascanio Sforza and Bramante’s design for the monastery of Sant’Ambrogio
Jessica Gritti

The Renaissance ornamentation of the monastery of Sant’Ambrogio and the transformation of the refectory into the Università Cattolica’s Aula Magna: new contributions
Lorenzo Francesco Colombo, Marco Rossi

The monastery of Sant’Ambrogio from the construction in the second half of the sixteenth century up to the end of the eighteenth century
Alessandro Rovetta

“Efforts that skim the Earth.” The Università Cattolica from the location of Sant’Agnese to Piazza Sant’Ambrogio
Aldo Carera

The architectural transformation of the old convent into a University, and the architectural landscape around it between the two World Wars
Cecilia De Carli

The Università Cattolica’s collections of contemporary art
Elena Di Raddo