Hospice de la Charité, Marseille
Puget, Pierre
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Alternative Title
Centre de la Vieille Charité
Date
1747Description
Lateral view within the arcade of the first storey of the quadrangle; Pierre Puget's two surviving built works, are the Halle aux Poissons, a magnificent temple-like building in Marseille, and the famous Hospice de la Charité, Marseille, for which his designs were accepted in 1671, though the building was not completed until 1747. The ensemble, with its oval, domed chapel surrounded by an open arcaded courtyard, is a highly original achievement of southern French architecture. It displays a thorough knowledge of recent Roman Baroque buildings, in particular of the more austerely decorated but spatially inventive works of Bernini and Rainaldi. It also displays an understanding of the latest developments in Paris, and has affinities in design as well as function with Libéral Bruand's Hôtel des Invalides and the chapel of the Salpêtrière. Pierre Puget apparently had little to do with the actual building of the project, though from 1700-1707 François Puget was in charge of its completion. (Both buildings have been carefully restored.) Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.oxfordartonline.com/ (accessed 7/16/2008)
Type of Work
hospital; hostelSubject
architectural exteriors, scientific or medical, hospice, charity ward, hospital, Baroque
Rights
Rights Statement
Licensed for educational and research use by the MIT community only