As we mentioned, the entrance to Aula Barrato was designed to feel like entering “a forest of knowledge”.
Take some time to note the detailing above you in the ceiling, and in the boiserie to your left. Where before there was extra seating for students, in the second renovation Scarpa designed a beautiful entrance hall.
The windows in the boiserie open and close. They can connect you to the classroom or separate you from it, adding practicality to this detailed and elegant wood architecture. When closed, the doors’ arches create the appearance of a row of gothic windows made of wood. The closed doors run parallel to the windows behind them in Aula Baratto, which also have a gothic-esque shape. In this way, they create an artistic mirror in the room. The fronts of the boiserie doors are covered with a soft thin cloth almost as delicate as the design of Carlo Scarpa’s clasp mechanism that was showcased in the main screen of this augmentation.
The details and beauty of the boiserie is partially due to the fact that Scarpa worked closely with artisans in his architecture. He had great respect for artisans. Scarpa’s own mother was a dressmaker, and he thought of his architecture like a tailor designing custom garments made for each building.
Scarpa’s commitment to professional artisans means that the building was nurtured through repairs even after its architect died. In 1979, a fire destroyed much of the building, including the entrance hall boiserie. The version you see here today was restored by one of Scarpa’s students, Valeriano Pastor, and the original artisan designers. And in 2004, when a general restoration of the room was needed, Ca’ Foscari once more called on those original craftspeople.