Michetti, Nicola

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Michetti, Nicola or Michetti, Niccolò (c.1675–1759). Italian architect. A pupil of Carlo Fontana, he carried Roman Baroque design well into C18. His elliptical church of San Pietro, Zagarolo, Italy (1717–23), is a conception comparable with designs by Juvarra. From 1718 to 1723 he worked for Tsar Peter the Great (1682–1725) in Russia and built the Summer Palaces of Katherinental, near Tallinn, Estonia (1718–23), and Strel'na, near St Petersburg (1720–3). He also designed the enormous gardens with fountains (influenced by French precedents) at Peterhof (1719–23). His work was a significant model for Rastrelli to follow. Back in Rome he designed the impressive west front of the Palazzo Colonna (1731–2), with a pavilion containing one of the most impressive C18 non-ecclesiastical interiors in Rome. He designed part of the Theatine Monastery of Sant'Andrea della Valle, with its splendid staircase (1755–7).

Bibliography

Millon (1980);
Placzek (ed.) (1982);
Jane Turner (1996)

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Michetti, Nicola

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