The first thing that comes to my mind when imagining the classic Italian villa is blue. And that's not the hue but the stature of the bloodlines of the residents.
I'm not sure if this is the case for everyone, but for me it is impossible to view the architecture, surfaces, and styling of a villa or palazzo without envisioning the families that commissioned the residence and whose lives have left the deep patina on those surfaces. We all love a good story and when it comes with a remarkable structure that someone calls their home- that's pretty compelling.
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The Perfect Example
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Fast forward to the 21st century and my favorite fashion and style read - W Magazine - runs a feature on the Palazzo Papadopoli. I have returned to this article often because the photos by Simon Watson are so beautiful. The story of the current residents reminds me of the extreme affection and care that goes into something of this magnitude and that the original palazzi and villas that were built centuries ago are beyond anything we could (should?) build now.
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Papadopoli Palazzo
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"With its 21,000-square-foot interior, it’s the largest private palazzo on the Grand Canal and one of the largest in Venice."
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So Palazzo or villa - what's the difference? For our purposes they are essentially one and the same as both are opulent forms of architecture and design. The etymology behind the word palazzo (in France- palais, English- palace) comes from the Palatine hill in Rome- the highest point of all the hills in Rome and the subsequent spot for the Julia family home (as in Julius Ceasar). Basically, Palazzo describes an aristocrat's urban dwelling and villa- their country home.
Here, the Papadopoli palazzo shows off another feature unique to Venice due to the purchase of two adjacent palazzi that enabled it's residents to have the comfort of a palazzo with the grounds of a villa.
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I encourage you to click on any of the photos to link to the actual W Magazine story of this implausible structure. It's a great tale of two eminent Italian family lineages that have come together to make this palace a home with their 5 children.
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Life in a palazzo or villa is clearly an historic fantasy that still captures our imaginations. It's a Cinderella image where we all hope that the "bad sisters" get banished to eternity in the suburbs while the good sister lives on the Grand Canal. For tomorrow, check back in for a closer look at how this "good sister" would choose to live on that Canal-