Nicholas Torres - Blogs 9+10

While not a building, the Piazza San Marco in Venice is one of my favorite examples of urban planning, with fantastic pieces of Venetian architecture surrounding it, it is the main meeting place in Venice. Venice itself is a marvel of not just architecture, but engineering as well, all these massive buildings located on top of a marsh. I have always been interested in urban planning and public spaces specifically and the Piazza truly represents how open the Venetians were in their society. What inspires me is the way the Piazza is laid out as it set the standard for future public squares with San Marco and the Dodge's Palace on one end, and the Library and Council Offices on either side, all opening to a massive public space, which further opens out onto the Grand Canal. All in this makes a grand unified designed space that one day I want to fully experience in person and represents the civic character of Venice at its main gate, something all cities should do.