Stefano Ittar

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Facade of the Collegiata in Catania made of limestone and sandstone in different colors.
Signature (1769).

Stefano Ittar (born March  15, 1724 in Owrutsch , Polish Owrucz, Ukraine ; †  January 18, 1790 in Valletta , Malta ) was a Polish architect . He is considered the last important representative of the late baroque in Catania , but then turned to neoclassicism (in the international meaning of the term) in Malta.

Ukraine

Jan de Witte : Dominican Church in Lviv .

There are almost only legends and speculations about Ittar's origins and training . In Malta he was thought to be French . His Sicilian great-grandson Sebastiano Zafarana Ittar claimed that he had a Tuscan count as an ancestor. In the Enciclopedia di Catania it is said that he was perhaps born in Florence in 1740 . According to family papers of a descendant from today's Ukraine, however, the Ittar have been detectable in Poland-Lithuania since 1500 . Before 1735 they owned the Hołowczyce estate near Aschmjany (Polish: Oszmiana) in what is now Belarus , but then moved to Volhynia .

According to Piotr Bohdziewicz, Ittar was influenced by the Roman architect Francesco Placidi, who, for example, built the Trinitarian Church in Krakow . Paweł Migasiewicz, on the other hand, describes Paweł Giżycki and Paolo Fontana , from whom churches in Tschortoryjsk (Czartorysk) and Isjaslaw (Zasław) originate, as possible teachers of Ittars. He also writes that he probably knew the monastery church designed by Jan de Witte in Berdychiv (Berdyczów). Perhaps Ittar took part in the creation of the main work of the artillery officer and later Lieutenant General Witte, the Dominican Church in Lwiw (Lwów). In any case, in 1754 he received the patent from Grand Hetman Jan Klemens Branicki as a lieutenant in the Polish Crown Army , which Bohdziewicz equated with the appointment as an architect.

Rome

Giuseppe Sardi : Santa Maria Maddalena in Rome .

When Ittar left Poland is unknown. He must have lived in Rome for a long time , otherwise he would not have been able to pretend to be a Roman later (also in his marriage certificate). According to Armando Antista, he was familiar with Borromini's inventions, popular in Sicily, and the techniques and rules used at the Accademia di San Luca . The facade of the Collegiata in Catania reminded Francesco Fichera of that of the church of Santa Maria Maddalena by Giuseppe Sardi in Rome. Giuseppe Dato and Giuseppe Pagnano also consider influences from lesser-known architects such as Gabriele Valvassori, Pietro Passalacqua, Filippo Raguzzini, Domenico Gregorini, Carlo De Dominicis or Carlo Marchionni. That Ittar was patronized in the Eternal City by Cardinal Alessandro Albani is an assumption made by the British art historian and Soviet spy Anthony Blunt .

Catania

Dome of San Nicolò l'Arena .
Facade of San Placido.
Porta Garibaldi ( Ferdinandea ) made of alternating layers of lava and limestone.

Ittar's future place of work, Catania, was destroyed in 1693 by the earthquake in Val di Noto (historical administrative unit in southeastern Sicily) and was still being rebuilt. With the departure of Giovan Battista Vaccarini (1702–1768) and the death of Giuseppe Palazzotto (1702–1764), she had lost two important architects. Before Ittar came to the city, according to Zafarana Ittar, he was appointed to the Spanish court , but he left no trace there. In 1765 he is said to have started the journey that finally led him to the foot of Mount Etna .

From Messina , the Benedictines of San Nicolò l'Arena let him come to Catania in 1766, so that he could appraise the construction of their monastery, which Giovan Battista Contini had begun before 1693 and which Vaccarini, Francesco Battaglia (1701–1788) and Palazzotto had led one after the other . Ignazio Paternò Castello, Prince of Biscari  - the head of the local Freemasons  - is said to have protected Ittar and arranged his marriage to Rosaria, a daughter of Battaglia, in 1767. We do not know whether Ittar Rosaria took when he in 1768 Lutsk (Łuck) and Zhytomyr visited (Żytomierz), where he had held for sale. Otherwise he stayed practically uninterrupted in Catania until 1784.

Appointed as Palazzotto's successor, he designed the semi-elliptical building backdrop for the Benedictines in front of the monastery church, today's Piazza Dante . He completed the common rooms ( refectory , library ) that Vaccarini had begun . Above all, however, he completed the church, the largest church in Sicily. This had partially collapsed in 1755 due to construction defects. Ittar built the 62 m high dome between 1778 and 1780 , which has withstood all earthquakes since then. She later served Battaglia's nephew Carmelo († 1799) as a model for the dome of the cathedral . In the architectural competition for the design of the facade of San Nicolò l'Arena, Ittar's project with a concave central section was defeated. Carmelo Battaglia was no longer able to complete the victorious project of an anonymous person, inspired by the Lateran basilica in Rome .

In addition to the facilities of Benedictine Ittar built in Catania especially the facades of the Collegiata (from ivory lime and olive-colored sandstone ), the Chiesa di San Placido and the Chiesa di San Martino dei Bianchi (white Carrara - and red Taormina - marble ). Fichera wrote about the Collegiata:

"Ittar's spirit must have been in a true state of euphoria when he designed this church (...)"

Together with his father-in-law, Ittar built Ferdinand III. of Sicily , a grandson of August III. from Poland, today called Porta Garibaldi Porta Ferdinandea (made of alternating layers of black lava and white limestone).

Partly together with Francesco Battaglia, Ittar was also involved in the following buildings in Catania:

  • Chiesa della Santisssima Trinità
  • Chiesa di Sant'Agata la Vetere
  • College Cutelli
  • Collegio di Propaganda Fide
  • Convento dell'Indirizzo
  • cathedral
  • Palazzo del Senato ( Palazzo degli Elefanti )
  • Palazzo dell'Università
  • Palazzo Ardizzone
  • Palazzo Biscari
  • Palazzo Cilestri, later Tricomi
  • Palazzo Fassari Pace
  • Palazzo San Martino Pardo
  • Palazzo Misterbianco
  • Casa di Musumeci
  • Piano di San Filippo, today Piazza Mazzini

Outside Catania, Ittar is attributed to the Monastero della Santissima Annunziata in Paternò , the second of the three collapsed domes of the Cathedral of Noto and the vestibule of the Chiesa di San Michele in Acireale .

Malta

National Library in Valletta , Malta (state around 1830).

In 1783, Ittar began to negotiate with the Grand Master of the Order of Malta Emmanuel de Rohan about building a library . In 1784 he went to Malta, but also via Rome to Zhytomyr, where he wrote a will. In the same year he moved with his family to Valletta, which, like the old town of Lviv and the late Baroque cities of south-east Sicily, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site . In addition to today's national library, he built the Villa Agata in Floriana  - the first neoclassical buildings (in the international meaning of the term) in the island nation. But the design of the late baroque Chiesa di Santa Maria di Porto Salvo in Valletta is also attributed to him. That he committed suicide is an invention - he was buried with all church honors.

What the Maltese art historian Vincenzo Bonello wrote is still valid:

"Despite his very valuable work in Catania and Malta, Stefano Ittar has not yet achieved the appropriate notoriety that he deserves."

The cross street in front of Porta Garibaldi in Catania is now called Via Ittar.

Of Ittar's nine children, Sebastiano (1768–1847) and Henryk Ittar (1773–1850) took up their father’s profession. The former accompanied Lord Elgin to Greece in 1803 and worked in Sicily and Malta. The latter worked for the Radziwiłł and Zamoyski magnate families in his father's Polish homeland .

Web link

Commons : Stefano Ittar  - collection of images, videos and audio files

literature

References and comments

  1. ↑ Piotr Bohdziewicz: Ittarowie w Polsce a barok Katanii XVIII wieku ( Prace i Materiały základů Historii Sztuki Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego w Wilnie  1). Nakładem Zakładu Historii Sztuki U. S. B., Wilno 1939, p. 17.
  2. ^ Edward Sammut: A Note on Stefano and Sebastiano Ittar. In: Proceedings of History Week 1982, The Malta Historical Society, Valletta 1983, pp. 20-27 ( digitized versionhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fmaltahistory.eu5.net%2Fhw%2Fhw19822.html~GB%3D~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ%3D~ double-sided%3D~ LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D ), here: p. 24.
  3. ↑ Giuseppe Dato, Giuseppe Pagnano: Stefano Ittar: un architetto polacco a Catania. In: Maria Giuffrè (ed.): L'architettura del Settecento in Sicilia, Sellerio, Palermo 1997, ISBN 88-389-1268-8 , pp. 143–150, 387–390, here: p. 144 / note. 7th
  4. ↑ (Sebastiano Zafarana Ittar :) Cenni biografici sulla vita e le opere degli architetti Stefano e Sebastiano Ittar. Stamperia militare, Palermo 1880 (Biblioteca della Società di Storia Patria per la Sicilia orientale, Catania). For authorship cf. Giuseppe Dato, Giuseppe Pagnano: Stefano Ittar: un architetto polacco a Catania. In: Maria Giuffrè (ed.): L'architettura del Settecento in Sicilia, Sellerio, Palermo 1997, ISBN 88-389-1268-8 , pp. 143–150, 387–390, here: p. 144 / note. 7th
  5. ↑ Lucio Sciacca in: Enciclopedia di Catania. Tringale, Catania 1987, Volume 2, p. 418.
  6. ↑ Piotr Bohdziewicz: Ittarowie w Polsce a barok Katanii XVIII wieku ( Prace i Materiały základů Historii Sztuki Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego w Wilnie  1). Nakładem Zakładu Historii Sztuki U. S. B., Wilno 1939, p. 17.
  7. ↑ Piotr Bohdziewicz: Ittarowie w Polsce a barok Katanii XVIII wieku ( Prace i Materiały základů Historii Sztuki Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego w Wilnie  1). Nakładem Zakładu Historii Sztuki U. S. B., Wilno 1939, pp. 24 f., 28, fig. 2, 5 f., 8.
  8. ↑ See Zbigniew Hornung: Jan de Witte . Architect kościoła Dominikanów we Lwowie. Piotr Włodarski, Warszawa 1995 (Summary: pp. 277–283).
  9. ↑ Paweł Migasiewicz: Le problème of inspirations polonaises dans les œuvres de Stefano siciliennes Ittar. In: Paola Barbera, Maria Rosaria Vitale (ed.): Architetti in viaggio: La Sicilia nello sguardo degli altri ( Diàtoni, studi di storia dell'architettura e restauro  1), without location 2017, ISBN 978-88-6242-256- 7 , pp. 302-313, here: pp. 306 f., 309-311.
  10. ↑ Piotr Bohdziewicz: Ittarowie w Polsce a barok Katanii XVIII wieku ( Prace i Materiały základů Historii Sztuki Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego w Wilnie  1). Nakładem základů Historii Sztuki U. S. B., Vilnius 1939 page 17, 27th
  11. ↑ Neither Zafarana Ittar nor Bohdziewicz comment on this. Paweł Migasiewicz: The problem of inspirations polonaises dans les œuvres siciliennes de Stefano Ittar. In: Paola Barbera, Maria Rosaria Vitale (ed.): Architetti in viaggio: La Sicilia nello sguardo degli altri ( Diàtoni, studi di storia dell'architettura e restauro  1), without location 2017, ISBN 978-88-6242-256- 7 , pp. 302–313, here: p. 305, sets the time of emigration to 1754 for some inexplicable reason.
  12. ↑ Giuseppe Dato, Giuseppe Pagnano: Stefano Ittar: un architetto polacco a Catania. In: Maria Giuffrè (ed.): L'architettura del Settecento in Sicilia, Sellerio, Palermo 1997, pp. 143–150, here: p. 146 / note. 17th
  13. ↑ Armando Antista: Disegni di progetto per la Chiesa di Santa Maria di Porto Salvo a La Valletta. Un'ipotesi attributiva. In: Lexicon. Storie e architettura in Sicilia e nel Mediterraneo (Palermo), 21/2015, pp. 81–87 ( digitized version http: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.academia.edu%2F26414082%2FDISEGNI_DI_PROGETTO_PER_LA_CHIESA_DI_SANTA_MARIA_DI_PORTO_SALVO_A%2F%2Fwww.academia.edu- LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D), here: pp. 85 f.
  14. ^ Francesco Fichera: G.B. Vaccarini e l'architettura del Settecento in Sicilia. Reale accademia d'Italia, Roma 1934, Volume 1, p. 193.
  15. ↑ Giuseppe Dato, Giuseppe Pagnano: Stefano Ittar: un architetto polacco a Catania. In: Maria Giuffrè (ed.): L'architettura del Settecento in Sicilia ( Biblioteca siciliana di storia e letteratura 32), Sellerio, Palermo 1997, ISBN 88-389-1268-8 , pp. 143–150, 387–390, 439, here: p. 145.
  16. ^ Anthony Blunt : Sicilian Baroque. Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London 1968, p. 22.
  17. ↑ (Sebastiano Zafarana Ittar :) Cenni biografici sulla vita e le opere degli architetti Stefano e Sebastiano Ittar. Stamperia militare, Palermo 1880, p. 4.
  18. ↑ See Vito Librando: Francesco Battaglia , architetto del XVIII secolo. In: Cronache di archeologia e storia dell'arte (Catania), 2/1963, pp. 129–154.
  19. ↑ (Sebastiano Zafarana Ittar :) Cenni biografici sulla vita e le opere degli architetti Stefano e Sebastiano Ittar. Stamperia militare, Palermo 1880, p. 4.
  20. ↑ Piotr Bohdziewicz: Ittarowie w Polsce a barok Katanii XVIII wieku ( Prace i Materiały základů Historii Sztuki Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego w Wilnie  1). Nakładem Zakładu Historii Sztuki U. S. B., Wilno 1939, p. 17. Giuseppe Dato, Giuseppe Pagnano: Stefano Ittar: un architetto polacco a Catania. In: Maria Giuffrè (ed.): L'architettura del Settecento in Sicilia ( Biblioteca siciliana di storia e letteratura 32), Sellerio, Palermo 1997, ISBN 88-389-1268-8 , pp. 143–150, 387–390, here: p. 144, incorrectly relate this information to the year 1754.
  21. ↑ (Johann Hermann von Riedesel :) Journey through Sicily and Greater Greece . Orell, Geßner, Füeßlin and Comp. , Zurich 1771, p. 104 ( digitized versionhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3D~GB%3DVHYOAAAAQAAJ%26pg%3DPA104~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ%3D~ double-sided%3D~LT%3D~PUR%3D ); Michel-Jean comte de Borch : Lettres sur la Sicile & sur l'Ile de Malthe . Frères Reycends, Turin 1782, 1st volume, p. 74 ( digitized version http: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3D~GB%3D2LYmNiKW2VcC%26pg%3DPA74~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ%3D~ double-sided%3D~LT%3D~PUR%3D).
  22. ↑ See Mariangela Liuzzo, Giuseppe Margani: La Cupola. In: Rosa G. Caponetto et al. : Quattro studi sulla chiesa di San Nicolò l'Arena: Indagini storico-costruttive ( Documenti,  27). Dipartimento di Architettura e Urbanistica, Università degli Studi di Catania 2004, ISBN 88-901663-0-4 , pp. 79-138 ( digitizedhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.academia.edu%2F28117108%2FQuattro_studi_sulla_chiesa_di_San_Nicol%C3%B2_l_Arena_Indagini_l_Arena_Indagini% .~0D3Druttive% double-sided% 3D ~ LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D ).
  23. ↑ Salvo Calogero: La ricostruzione della cattedrale di Catania dopo il terremoto del 1693. In: Synaxis (Studio Teologico S. Paolo, Catania), 22/1 (2004), pp. 113–148, here: p. 142 ( digitized version http: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fissuu.com%2Fstudiosanpaolo%2Fdocs%2Fsynaxis_22-1__2004_%2F142~GB%3D~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ%3D~ double-sided% 3D ~ LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D) .
  24. ^ Salvatore Maria Calogero: Il monastero catanese di San Nicolò l'Arena (IV). Il completamento del monastero e della chiesa (from 1766 alla confisca post-unitaria). In: Agorà, Periodico di Cultura Siciliana (Catania), 57/2016, pp. 66–71 ( digitized version http: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.iismarchesimascalucia.edu.it%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F03%2Farticolo-19-monastero-benedettini-IV.pdf~GB%3D~ IA% 3D ~ MDZ% 3D% 0A ~ SZ% 3D ~ double-sided% 3D ~ LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D), here: pp. 66–69.
  25. ↑ See Bartolomeo Azzaro: La Chiesa di S. Martino dei Bianchi a Catania. In: Palladio (Roma), 8/1995, 15, pp. 91-101.
  26. ^ Francesco Fichera: G.B. Vaccarini e l'architettura del Settecento in Sicilia. Reale accademia d'Italia, Roma 1934, Volume 1, p. 193.
  27. ↑ Cf. Antonio Caruso: Stefano Ittar a Paternò: La chiesa e il monastero della SS. Annunziata. In: Quaderni del dipartimento Patrimonio Architettonico e Urbanistico ( Università degli studi Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria ), 11/2001, 21 f., Pp. 107–122.
  28. ↑ Cf. Emanuele Fidone: Problematiche progettuali e realizzative delle cupole. In: Lexicon. Storie e architettura in Sicilia (Palermo), 1/2002 ( Ricerche per la storia della chiesa madre di Noto ), pp. 81-99.
  29. ↑ Piotr Bohdziewicz: Ittarowie w Polsce a barok Katanii XVIII wieku. Zakład Historii Sztuki Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego , Wilno 1939, p. 17 / note. 2.
  30. ↑ See Edward Sammut: A Note on Stefano and Sebastiano Ittar. In: Proceedings of History Week 1982, The Malta Historical Society, Valletta 1983, pp. 20-27 ( digitized versionhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fmaltahistory.eu5.net%2Fhw%2Fhw19822.html~GB%3D~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ%3D~ double-sided%3D~ LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D ); Conrad Thake: Stefano Ittar. Architect of the Order of St John in Malta (1784-1790). In: Lexicon. Storie e architettura in Sicilia e nel Mediterraneo (Palermo), 16/2013, pp. 53–66 ( digitized version http: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.um.edu.mt%2Flibrary%2Foar%2Fbitstream%2F123456789%2F50383%2F1%2FStefano_Ittar-architect_of_the_Order_of_28df_John%% 3D ~ IA% 3D ~ MDZ% 3D% 0A ~ SZ% 3D ~ double-sided% 3D ~ LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D).
  31. ↑ Armando Antista: Disegni di progetto per la Chiesa di Santa Maria di Porto Salvo a La Valletta. Un'ipotesi attributiva. In: Lexicon. Storie e architettura in Sicilia e nel Mediterraneo (Palermo), 21/2015, pp. 81–87 ( digitized version http: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.academia.edu%2F26414082%2FDISEGNI_DI_PROGETTO_PER_LA_CHIESA_DI_SANTA_MARIA_DI_PORTO_SALVO_A%2F%2Fwww.academia.edu- LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D).
  32. ^ Edward Sammut: A Note on Stefano and Sebastiano Ittar. In: Proceedings of History Week 1982, The Malta Historical Society, Valletta 1983, pp. 20-27 ( digitized versionhttp: //vorlage_digitalisat.test/1%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fmaltahistory.eu5.net%2Fhw%2Fhw19822.html~GB%3D~IA%3D~MDZ%3D%0A~SZ%3D~ double-sided%3D~ LT% 3D ~ PUR% 3D ), here: p. 24.
  33. ↑ Vincenzo Bonello: Posizione storica dell'architettura maltese dal Cinquecento al Settecento. In: L'architettura a Malta dalla preistoria al ottocento. Atti del XV Congresso di Storia dell'Architettura, Malta, 11-16 September 1967. Centro dei studi per la storia dell'architettura, Roma 1970, pp. 453-458, here: p. 456.
personal data
SURNAME Ittar, Stefano
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ittar, Stefan
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Polish architect
DATE OF BIRTH March 15, 1724
PLACE OF BIRTH Ovrutsch , Ukraine
DATE OF DEATH January 18, 1790
Place of death Valletta , Malta