Public Space Study I

Considering the variety of public spaces within Rome, all of those visited are defined through the merging of roads into a larger gathering space—a piazza. Entrance into these spaces from public thoroughfares is critical to not only shaping the initial perception of the space but also the way in which these spaces stimulate activity. The piazze exhibit a variety of ideas on how to handle public entry, which can be generalized into three conditions as outlined below.















The Campo dei Fiore serves as a connection between the Trastevere region and the larger Piazza Navona to the North which in many ways it can be likened to. This connection is illustrated through the automobile passage which, while piercing and otherwise pedestrian space, sustains the activity which occurs on it. On both the Campo dei Fiore and the Piazza Navona, a multiplicity of entries (8 and 9 respectively) from essentially all directions offer dramatic shifts from the tight, narrow streets to the open, active piazze. The entries are the point where light begins to touch the ground, crowds fan out, movement slows, and the entirety of the piazza is revealed.










Smaller public spaces such as the Piazza di S. Ignazio, and especially the Piazza di Pietra offer entries similar to those mentioned above. They can, though, be understood as simply expansions of the streets which pass through them. The Via di Pietra does not diffuse but continues straight through the Piazza di Pietra. However the northern palazzo is ‘cut away’ so as to create a larger space on which to view the southern façade. In both cases the southern façades are not fully revealed until one passes through the piazza as the entrances are situated at an angle which limits the initial view.












The Piazza del Popolo differs, quite dramatically, from the other piazze to the south in terms of its mode of entry. The elliptical symmetry which is unique to the Piazza allows for a radial organization of the streets in to, and out of Rome. The concentricity of the streets is evident in the presence of the centrally located obelisk. Whereas the obelisk of the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi is only evident within the Piazza Navona itself, the Obelisco Flaminio can be seen as far away as the Piazza Venezia nearly two kilometers to the South. As a result, the obelisk doubles as a marker which directs pedestrians towards the Piazza del Popolo. Entrance to the piazza from the streets on which the obelisk is visible, the Via di Ripetta, Via del Corso, and Via del Babuino, proves to be quite different than that of other piazze as these streets gradually widen at their terminus. These streets actually terminate on a rectilinear appendage of the elliptical piazza proper, which further extends the transition zone. Unlike the Piazza Navona, the Campo dei Fiore, or many of the smaller piazze throughout the city, the transition between street and piazza smooth rather than abrupt.