Turin: Art nouveau

Palazzina Rossi Galateri

I found the core of this walk in the Cit Turin district of the city on the internet and embellished it with some additional research. It turned out that we could walk to the area from out hotel in about 20 minutes, so we started the walk proper at the first art nouveau building, the exquisite Palazzina Rossi Galateri in via Passalacqua. The architect was Pietro Fenoglio, the leading light in art nouveau in Turin.

We then crossed the busy Corso Inghilterra to head along via Cibario, where there is a nice concentration of buildings. Our first sighting was one not on the list, at number 9. It had beautiful, delicate, painted panels.

A few doors away was this striking house at via Cibario 15 which had fascinating shapes incised into the render.

A little further along was this gem at number 19, on the corner of via Beaumont. This time the main emphasis was on sculptured shapes.

We turned into via Beaumont and soon found Casa Tasca on the left at the junction with via Piffetti. It dates from 1903 and the architect was Giovanni Battista Benazzo. It has beautiful floral plasterwork and delicate floral panels in between the windows on the top floor.

On the opposite corner was this lovely building with delicate flower motifs around teh top floor windows.

We walked along via Piffetti for a hundred yards or so in each direction. Numbers 10 (1908, by Giovani Gribodo) and 12 were perhaps the most interesting with their elaborate plasterwork and central decorative panels.

They are worth seeing closer up:

Continuing along via Beaumont we came to Palazzo Beaumont at number 7. The delicate floral pattern on blue plasterwork was delightful.

At the end of via Beaumont, on the corner of the junction with Corso Francia, is one of Turin's finest buildings, the Casa Fenoglio-Lafleur, built by Pietro Fenoglio for his own occupation.

Here is the rear corner with its beautiful flower motifs ...

... and here is a view of the great corner window.

Turning left briefly into Corso Francia we came to the imposing Villino Raby at number 8.

There were delicate floral panels on the top floor...

... and delightful designs on the side of the building. We thought they were reminiscent of William Morris.

Retracing our steps along Corso Francia we came to the dramatic Palazzo della Vittoria by Carrera (1918).

 The real delight of this imposing building was the repeated dragon motifs.

Opposite, there was a nice building at 34 Corso Francia with further decorative panels under the eaves - clearly something of a Turin style.

Conditions: warm and sunny.

Distance: a couple of miles, plus another couple from our hotel and back.

Rating: four and a half stars. Some lovely buildings which deserve to be better known.