THE URBAN ROOM
Atriums

Drawings:

1. American Academy, Rome (30/7/03)
2. Pantheon, Roma (Marzo, 2002)
3. S. Domenico Maggiore, Naples (9/3/04)
4. S. Maria Maggiore di Pietrasanta, Naples (2/3/04)
5. S. Michele, Mazara del Valle (5/4/04)

In addition to the piazza and its variants, semi-public spaces such as the atrium or cloister mediate between the urban fabric and the building interior. In America, atriums are the vestibules of public and commercial office buildings, but seldom are they considered outdoor rooms. In Italy the atrium is a fully contained space that precedes a church or monastic complex (img. 4 — S. Maria Maggiore di Pietrasanta, Naples). Its nature is semi-public as it is a place of both gathering and transition. Atriums can also serve secular purposes as can be seen in the case of the American Academy in Rome (img. 1).

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