Façade van Palazzo Salviati after 1655

This is Giovanni Battista Falda’s etching of the Façade van Palazzo Salviati, created around the mid-17th century. The architectural rendering presents a symmetrical, three-story palace front, articulated with rhythmic rows of windows and classical details. The rigorous structure immediately grabs our attention, especially how Falda uses line and form to define the building's mass and volume. Notice the interplay between the solid, shadowed areas and the lighter, open spaces of the windows. These formal elements aren't just descriptive. They communicate a sense of order and rational design that was central to the architectural thinking of the time. The facade becomes a kind of visual text, encoding ideas about power, social hierarchy, and the control of space. Consider how this meticulously rendered facade invites us to reflect on the relationship between art, architecture, and society. It challenges us to think about the ways buildings embody and project cultural values.