The Venetian Ca'd'Oro (image from Wikipedia Commons)Although the Glasgow building was originally a furniture store, the architect based the design on the Ca' d'Oro (or more precisely the Palazzo Santa Sofia), a palace on the Grand Canal in Venice. This Venetian palace has the characteristic openness and grace of the Venetian Gothic style with lancet arches comprising delicate tracery. The Glasgow building, which gained its name in 1927 when a restaurant of that name was opened on top of the building, has a facade even more open than typical Venetian Gothic buildings, though openings are filled with glass. The window frames are in the form of open ended figures of eight, a familiar feature of the Venetian style. It was built using cast iron frames with masonry arches above the shops below. Although there was a fire in the building in the 1980s, the cast iron frame survived. Later the building was restored and reopened in 1990. |
 | |
 |
 |
|
| At street level the shops have sculpted stone pilasters surrounding the cast iron frame, which becomes much more decorative on the upper tiers. |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Floral decoration abounds, piers end in decorative finials and the cornice has a delicate, lacy design. | ||
 |
 |
 |
Click here to return to index of art historical sites.
Click here to return to index of artists and architects.
Click here to return to chronological index.
Click here to see the home page of Bluffton College.
