1,721,124 research outputs found
By Means of Rome. Robert Venturi: prima del Post-Modern (1944-1966)
Full text linkPost-Modern architecture is “populist”, a “scenographically simulating” “eclectic parody”. It is difficult to overcome these kinds of comments, especially when they are written by Kenneth Frampton. This harsh critique has biased our view of the work of Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown, considered as precursors and protagonists of Post-Modernism. Even today Venturi’s architecture suffers from the negative impact of that disapproval.
Surprisingly enough, during his career Venturi tried his best to dissociate his architecture from the work of most of his self-proclaimed followers. He declared on many occasions: “I am not a Post-Modernist”, blaming a misconception about his work, often simplistically dismissed as a historic revival.
Official historiography about Venturi begins with his Mother’s House, completed in 1964, and Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture, published in 1966. My PhD thesis argues that in order to gain a wider perspective on Venturi’s work, we should shift our focus from the 1960s to the mid-40s. Therefore, my work investigates his research and projects from his early years, beginning in 1944, the date when Venturi enrolls at the Princeton University. From this specific viewpoint, Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture turns into the final outcome of his first 20 years of research on historic architecture and urban context.
His particular awareness of history was defined during his two-year stay at the American Academy in Rome between 1954 and 1956. That would have been an interesting moment to be in Italy: from the Gianicolo Hill, Venturi could not only carry on his research on the architectural principles of the Baroque and Mannerism, but he would have also had the chance to absorb the lively Italian cultural debate of the postwar period, animated by the ideas about historicism, neorealism and museography. Thanks to his friendship with Ernesto Nathan Rogers, Venturi is exposed to history of architecture not only through the physical proximity to the buildings of Rome, but also through the passionate debate about the role of contemporary architecture in the preexistent contexts.
This is not the first time Venturi is in Rome: in fact, he applied at the American Academy in order to verify his intuitions about the historic city developed during his previous Italian tour.
The first time Venturi travels to Europe is during the summer of 1948, when he is a 23-year-old architecture student. In nine weeks he visits England, France and Italy, and he deliberately dedicates half of that time to the discovery of Italy alone. Challenging academic as well as personal expectations, Rome in particular acts as a place for an epiphany of new reflections on topics considered as outmoded at that time, such as decoration in architecture, the dynamism of the Baroque urban spaces, and the spatial character of the Italian piazza.
Upon his return to Princeton, Venturi writes a report that is a “manifesto” of his new fields of inquiry inspired by his experience of the Italian cities. From this moment he would change his study plan in order to better investigate his Italian lessons.
What is striking in this story is the absolute consistency of Venturi’s interests on those topics and the way he addresses them. Referring to his manuscripts from the 40’s and the 50’s, we can understand that it is not really the appearance of the buildings what interests him, but the experience of those architectures, the particular atmosphere of historic places, the perception of “context, color, scale and natural monumentality” of the Italian cities.
Only in reflecting on Venturi’s early years can we have a broader picture of his work and on the way he uses architectural references, a way that it is not (or not only) aesthetic and formal, but that is mainly a way to interpret architectural principles neglected during the Modern period. Through his experience of Rome, Venturi is able to cultivate his profound observation on the context, a skill he would ultimately use to perceive his own culture with new eyes. Because, as Venturi recalls, “you learn not so much from Rome, as by means of Rome”
IL GIARDINO STORICO DI SANTA MARIA DELLA FEDE A NAPOLI. DA CIMITERO DEGLI INGLESI A PARCO PUBBLICO
No full textThe former Non-Catholic English Cemetery in Naples is nowadays the historic garden of Santa
Maria della Fede. The contribution reconstructs the history of the place, with particular attention
to the evolution of the historical and artistic values of the cemetery and its monuments. The public
park is then analyzed considering it as a lastscape, a space now incorporated by the growing city, a
place that needs a rethinking that enhances both historical and contemporary urban and collective
values
"Un film fatto solo di case". Narrazioni e immagini dell'architettura di Roma nella cinematografia di Nanni Moretti
No full text
New insights into Chlamydiae persistence: An energy metabolism strategy?
No full textChlamydiaceae is a family of obligate intracellular bacteria generally considered energy parasites. Several studies have suggested that Chlamydiae are capable of independently producing energy and, more importantly, several genes involved in the energy metabolism are up-regulated during the persistent state. Thus, it has been suggested that chlamydial persistence could be a complex and flexible metabolic strategy designed to favor a lengthy survival in the host cell by evading the immune response. In conclusion, more detailed studies on the shift in the chlamydial energy metabolism, from the active to the persistent form, may be helpful in future to determine whether chlamydial persistence observed in vitro does occur in vivo and whether chronic sequelae of chlamydial diseases may be related to the persistence. Copyright © by BIOLIFE, s.a.s.Chlamydiaceae is a family of obligate intracellular bacteria generally considered energy parasites. Several studies have suggested that Chlamydiae are capable of independently producing energy and, more importantly, several genes involved in the energy metabolism are up-regulated during the persistent state. Thus, it has been suggested that chlamydial persistence could be a complex and flexible metabolic strategy designed to favor a lengthy survival in the host cell by evading the immune response. In conclusion, more detailed studies on the shift in the chlamydial energy metabolism, from the active to the persistent form, may be helpful in future to determine whether chlamydial persistence observed in vitro does occur in vivo and whether chronic sequelae of chlamydial diseases may be related to the persistence
Infectious burden and atherosclerosis. A clinical issue
Full text linkAtherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases of multifactorial etiology, are the leading cause of death worldwide. In the last decade, more infectious agents, labeled as "infectious burden", rather than any single pathogen, have been showed to contribute to the development of atherosclerosis through different mechanisms. Some microorganisms, such as Chlamydia pneumoniae (C. pneumoniae), human cytomegalovirus, etc. may act directly on the arterial wall contributing to endothelial dysfunction, foam cell formation, smooth muscle cell proliferation, platelet aggregation as well as cytokine, reactive oxygen specie, growth factor, and cellular adhesion molecule production. Others, such as Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), influenza virus, etc. may induce a systemic inflammation which in turn may damage the vascular wall (e.g., by cytokines and proteases). Moreover, another indirect mechanism by which some infectious agents (such as H. pylori, C. pneumoniae, periodontal pathogens, etc.) may play a role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis is molecular mimicry. Given the complexity of the mechanisms by which each microorganism may contribute to atherosclerosis, defining the interplay of more infectious agents is far more difficult because the pro-atherogenic effect of each pathogen might be amplified. Clearly, continued research and a greater awareness will be helpful to improve our knowledge on the complex interaction between the infectious burden and atherosclerosis
Updating the relationship of Chlamydia pneumoniae with atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. A systematic review of reviews
No full textChlamydia pneumoniae is the etiologic agent of respiratory tract infections in humans, including community-acquired pneumonia, and has been associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. The present systematic review of reviews aimed at answering important questions on the involvement of C. pneumoniae in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, its cellular and molecular mechanisms, and whether there is evidence of a causal relationship. The databases PubMed/Med-line, Scopus, and Web of Science were searched for all review articles published from 2003 to the end of 2023. A total of 27 reviews, systematic reviews, and systematic reviews with metanalysis were included. Overall, current evidence suggests that C. pneumoniae is a biologically plausible candidate for the causation of atherosclerosis, albeit not all the 4 Koch postulates are fulfilled; oxidative stress and inflammation are the most likely pathogenic mechanisms mediated by C. pneumoniae. However, it is still unclear how the persistent form, responsible for chronic inflammation, fits into this etiopathogenetic scenario. In the future, the newly-designed transformation systems for the genomic manipulation of C. pneumoniae will surely help expand our knowledge on the role of this pathogen in atherogenesis
Lyme borreliosis in Central Italy (1995-1998)
No full textFrom January 1995 to July 1998, 340 serum samples collected in Central Italy from patients clinically suspected of having Lyme borreliosis were investigated. All samples were tested for the presence of antibodies to B. burgdorferi by Elisa. The Elisa positive samples were subjected to further tests by Western Blot for confirmation. Out of 340 patients, 13 (3.8%) proved to be B. burgdorferi positive, while 9 (2.6%) were found to have Lyme disease with seroprevalence being higher in these latter than that of blood donors from Central Italy. Our results indicate that Lyme borreliosis is present in Central Italy. A comparison between Italian and European studies reveals that Lyme disease is still underestimated in Italy, the main reason being that a monitoring system for the study of Lyme borreliosis was only established in 1990
Geographical incidence of infection with Borrelia burgdorferi in Europe
No full textDuring recent years many seroepidemiological studies have been published about Lyme borreliosis in various European countries. This paper presents a review of these studies to clarify the geographical incidence of the infection by B. burgdorferi in Europe and particularly in Italy. Data of Lyme disease seroprevalence has been established in European patients or at-risk populations and in blood donors or control subjects. In Northern Europe the seroprevalence of antibodies to B. burgdorferi in patients or in at-risk subjects is higher in Sweden, 19% and lower in Estonia, 2.7%. In Central Europe the incidence of antibodies to B. burgdorferi in patients or in at-risk subjects is higher in The Netherlands, 28% and Switzerland, about 26%, and lower in Poland, 15%. The range of antibodies to B. burgdorferi in blood donors or control subjects shows the highest spikes in Ireland 15% and the lowest in Austria 7.7% and in Germany 5.5%. In Southern Europe we have the highest incidence in Croatia, 43%, while we have the lowest incidence in Greece, 1.1%. In Italy the seroprevalence of antibodies to B. burgdorferi inpatients or in at-risk subjects seems to vary, in Northern Italy, from the lowest incidence in Lombardia 3.2% to the highest in Friuli 22.3%; in Central Italy, from the lowest incidence in Emilia (Parma) 0.2% to the highest in Toscana 18.3%. The range of antibodies to B. burgdorferi in blood donors or control subject shows the lowest spikes in Lazio 1.5%, while the highest are in Sicilia 10.9%. Although the amount of works on infection diffusion by B. burgdorferi is increasing, the statistical evaluations, comparisons and the drawing of acceptable conclusions continue to be difficult. In fact data, obtained from various European laboratories, are often not directly comparable, because of different serological tests used to detect antibodies to B. burgdorferi. Consequently it seems very important the work that could be performed by a multicenter study on the standardization of the criteria to be used in WB interpretation, presently in progress among several different European laboratories, and the necessary consequent efforts to elaborate a common panel of criteria about the comparison of the data
Lyme borreliosis infection in Europe.
No full textLyme borreliosis is the most common tick-borne disease in the United States and Europe. It is caused by spirochetes of the Borrelia burgdorferi species complex which are transmitted by ticks of the genus Ixodes. This paper presents a review of the studies published about Lyme borreliosis in Europe and in Italy. Seroepidemiologic studies have been conducted in various European countries concerning patients, groups at risk and general population. The distribution of LB in Europe is very variable and the risk is associated with occupational and recreational activities in forested areas and with residence in rural area. Taking the limitations of seroprevalence methods into account, it is evident that the prevalence of Lyme borreliosis varies considerably in different European countries, with an overall increasing prevalence from west to east in central-eastern Europe, a gradient of decreasing incidence in Spain and Greece and from north to south in Italy
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