MUTTONI, Francesco
(b. 1669, Lacima, d. 1747, Vicenza)

View of the grand staircase

1701-11
Photo
Palazzo Repeta, Vicenza

In 1701 the marquis Scipione Repeta engaged Vincenzan architect Francesco Muttoni to rebuild the old family palace located in Piazza San Lorenzo, Vicenza. The project was completed in 1711. The monumental double-flight staircase leading to the piano nobile was completed in 1707, according to the inscription above the arch next to the second landing. The ceiling of the staircase was frescoed by the French artist Louis Dorigny, who displayed a masterly skill in his use of perspective.

At the top of the grand staircase, beneath a stucco cartouche that contains the representations Painting and Sculpture, Dorigny has painted a figure of Hercules as a bronze statue within an illusionistic niche.