Aloisio Novi. An architect from Intelvi Valley in Vasili III’s Russia

Abstract

The misunderstanding of names and surnames and the diversity of spelling did not help in the recognition of Aloisio Novi as a member of the second generation of Lake Artists who worked in Russia, and who were above all involved in the building of Moscow as the Grand Princes’ capital city. Aloisio Novi – who we can finally consider a member of the well-known dynasty from Intelvi Valley – arrived in Russia between the reigns of Velikij Knjaz' – Gosudar’ Ivan III (1462-1505) and his successor Vasili III (1505-1533). He was preceded by the leading figure of Pietro Antonio Solari (member of a branch of the dynasty from the Intelvi Valley), who worked together with Aristotele Fioravanti from Bononia, and by Luigi Carcano from Milan, who was active together with different masters from the Ceresio region. Before coming to Russia, Novi worked for the Crimean court of Meñli I Giray in 1504. In the same period, some of his relatives worked in the great building site of the Certosa of Pavia. He could use different architectonical languages and this capability was one of the most distinguished features of his activity in Moscow. This is particularly clear considering the projects undertaken in the Kremlin area: the cathedral of Archangel Michael, the portal of the Cathedral of the Annunciation, sections of the Palace of Facets and of the Dukal Palace. He was also involved in the building of the cathedral of the Dormition of Mary in Simonov monastery and in the cathedral dedicated to Saint Peter in the Vysoko-Petrovskij monastery. His highest achievement was his ability, typical of Lake Artists, of moulding the local Russian context with his artistic culture, meaning the Como heritage enriched with Venetian elements. It should be remembered that, in Venice, many different families from the Lombard area worked at the time, from the Lombardo del Solaro to the various dynasties from Carona. Novi introduced new architectural patterns (the Saint Peter rotunda) but was also capable of using the traditional Russian ones (the five domes, three naves and six pillars in Saint Michael). He was also able, with recognisable consistency, to lay the foundations of patterns which would influence Russian architecture at least until the beginning of the 17th century when the house of the Romanovs became the reigning dynasty (1613).