For the realization of an architectural project, architect Carlo Scarpa (Venice, 1906 – Sendai, Japan, 1978) produced many improvised sketches on paper or with additions of other marks made in pencil or with pastel colors; this decision could, subsequently, undergo continuous variations because he was never satisfied with the result. This way of proceeding was also adopted by him when he designed the expansion of the Gypsotheca of Antonio Canova in Possagno.
The Gypsotheca of Antonio Canova
Between 1955 and 1957, the architect was called to work in Possagno. Let us not forget that Scarpa would be particularly connected to the Treviso hinterland; the architect often retreated to his studio-house in nearby Asolo, and after the intervention in Possagno, from 1969, he worked on the Brion Tomb in San Vito di Altivole (TV), where he was buried after his death.
But let’s return to Possagno; Scarpa’s task was to arrange the surroundings of the Gypsotheca, which included some buildings previously used for storage and, at the same time, reorganize the collection. His main concern was the condition of the land on which he decisively intervened to create a building that would not clash with the existing structures: a large basilica hall built according to a design by Francesco Lazzari, which had become a significant point in museum architecture since 1836: the Canovian museum was, in fact, the first museum in Veneto built specifically to house works of art.
The creative genius of the Venetian architect was such that it favored any invention, allowing his imagination to design. Scarpa, after all, was capable of modifying any architectural element even during the work process. Fundamentally, the architect hoped that it would be light that would “build” a space. For him, it was not necessary to focus attention on the content. He was interested in the container: here, initially, the colossal sculpture of Theseus defeating the centaur had to be appropriately placed. Surrounding it, the collection of freshly restored plaster casts after the world conflict and all the terracotta sketches had to find a worthy exhibition arrangement. He was also keen to ensure that the historical structure was in perfect harmony with the new construction.
The new building, then, had to fit into the space in front, scattered with hills, vegetation, historic buildings, and lush territories. The then Superintendency for Monuments for Veneto was aware of the impact of a newly designed construction that was not suitable for the local space. The characteristics then adopted consisted of misplaced windows, irregular spaces, staggered floors, opaque or marbled walls, and a water basin where light had prominence, and finally heterogeneous materials.
Light and Architecture
On September 15, 1957, this museum expansion was inaugurated in the presence of local authorities and superintendent Vittorio Moschini. The genius of the realization was immediately evident.
Light, above all, was the absolute protagonist capable of producing a comprehensive reading of Canova’s plasters: the model of The Graces, Love and Psyche standing, the dancers, the reclining figures, and especially all those terracotta sketches placed in the newly designed showcases and finally enhanced. The result was a ‘living’ museum where the protagonism is clearly entrusted to the light that manages to permeate even the visitor, who has at their disposal a space in which to act, moving within a stage constructed for planes, surfaces, materials, and above all traversed by so much light that expands and modifies the scene every moment of the day and night.
Carlo Scarpa wrote: “The problem I had to face in arranging the Gypsotheca was light: it was not about paintings, but sculptures, and the sculptures were not made of marble or wood, but of plaster […]. And the sun, moving over a sculpture, never gives negative effects, as it does when inside a hall it hits certain points and not others, highlighting only some of the paintings, no matter how wonderful the works of art are, like the powerful light of the sun.”
Detail of Sculptures and Light 
Wing by Carlo Scarpa, overall view
