Born in Messina, Sicily in 1678, Filippo Juvarra’s youth was spent working in his father’s silversmith shop. As a young man, Filippo entered the priesthood in 1703 and then moved to Rome to study under the guidance of Carlo Fontana until 1714.
Filippo became an architect and theatre set designer and was patronised by European royalty, including the Holy Roman Emperor, Joseph I.
The Victoria and Albert Museum, London houses an entire volume of one hundred and thirty two of Filippo’s theatre and set designs, which date from between 1708-1712.
Images: Agostino Masucci, Portrait of Filippo Juvarra, c. 1735-1736, oil on canvas, Real Academia da Bellas Artes de San Fernando. Wikimedia Commons.
Filippo Juvarra, Theatre Designs 9 of 132, 1708-1712, pen and ink and wash, Victoria and Albert Museum London. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
References: Paolo Cornaglia, Andrea Merlotti, Elisabeth Kieven, Costanza Roggero, Cristina Ruggero, Filippo Juvarra: 1678-1736, architetto dei Savoia, architetto in Europa, Campisano, 2014.
Henry A. Milton, Filippo Juvarra: Drawings from the Roman Period, 1704-1714, Parts 1 & 2, Edizioni dell’Elefante, 1999.