The New Ara Pacis

Oh there is nothing better than a good Italian polemic. About two months ago, the new Ara Pacis building opened here in Rome, something that I've been waiting years to see in person, because it happens to be quite important historically and art historically. The architect is the American Richard Meier, which could be part of the problem -- that an American got the commission instead of an Italian, I don't know. At any rate, I went over there yesterday afternoon after leaving the Domenichino frescoes and the Caravaggio Life of Saint Matthew series at San Luigi dei Francesi, because I wanted to record for posterity the graffiti on the projected plans outside. Once I got there, I decided to go in, because it was open.

Here's the outside -- it's like a fence, and it's covered with these boards showing the project. The Romans, some in the Roman dialect, have made their opinions known, which they have been for at least the last five years. I chose the above photo because it's bold, and most of the others are written in ballpoint pen. It says "Better the architects of centuries ago". Some other things people wrote are (here translated from the Italian):

• This is the most expensive mailbox in the world.
• You are ignorant both architecturally and culturally.
• But what is the monument? A modern colosseum or that piece of Roman marble?
  
• Meier: the ruin of Roman culture.
• Maybe it will look better after it gets a little dirty.
  (It's right on the lungotevere with all kinds of traffic, it won't be long.)
• The angels of the church look at these sad buildings and they are perplexed!
• Not even Mussolini went this far! This is worse!
• This is the cemetery of the [political] left.
• Finally the courage to put modern with the ancient.

This is the first building to be built in the center of Rome like this since the fall of Fascism. As a result, I think really that part of the problem is that Romans are not used to this sort of new building thing, whereas in other places, it's very normal. Romans see Milan and Germany as being cold places because of the modern architecture, which is not a bad point, but still moderately prejudiced. I'd prefer something like this over some hideous neoclassical monstrosity. Neoclassical monstrosities are so ridiculous because in their quest for imitation, they end up over-doing something that was meant to be simple and above all, pleasing to the eye.

The only thing I didn't like was that there were some plaster copies of Imperial portrait busts right inside the door, along with a kind of weird Imperial Augustan family tree. Instead of the focus being immediately and dramatically on the Ara Pacis, the eye was distracted by tchotchkes.

Below are two views, one from the left and the other from the back looking towards the right. From the second picture, you can see the Mausoleum of Augustus, which is a rather interesting structure to have survived this well until now.


All around the Ara Pacis/Mausoleum of Augustus area on three sides (the fourth being the lungotevere) are hideous Fascist-era buildings. There are some Fascist-era buildings that are very nice, very well done. Not these. However, if one were to enter the discussion of Twentieth-Century Authoritarian Dictatorship Art and Architecture, I'd have to say I prefer the Italian situation to the disgusting misogynist and repressed Nazi/Hitler situation, mostly also because he thought of himself as an artist. On one of the buildings nearby, there's a building with a surviving inscription with the following: "The Italian people the immortal people that always find a springtime for their hope for their passion for their grandeur." There's nothing like a good dose of Authoritarian Nationalism every once and a while.

Also nearby is where Caravaggio killed Rannuccio Tomassoni. It always amazes me to think about what a genteel city Rome is now compared to what it used to be during the 1500s and 1600s, when dead bodies were floating down the Tiber and artists were killing people in duels... There was violence everywhere then, we're perhaps better at hiding it now.

However, on a happy note I will end. Modern architecture = love!