Public Space, Facadism and Other Illusions Scuola Grande di San Marco in Venice

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Cover image: Bologna. Piazza Nettuno. Picture by Elettra Giulia Bastoni (2024).
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Published: Mar 31, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.32891/jps.v10i2.1879
Keywords:
illusion, virtual space, Quattrocento, depth, manipulation

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Ana Morcillo Pallares
University of Michigan
Julia McMorrough
University of Michigan
Jonathan Rule
University of Michigan
John McMorrough
University of Michigan

Abstract

The controversial, complex and asymmetrical composition of the facade of Scuola Grande di San Marco in Venice constitutes an anomaly for its time. In contrast with the traditional practice of the Renaissance, the Scuola’s elaborate shell was built at the same time as rebuilding the structure which was damaged in a fire in 1485. This unusual and speedy decision indicated the key importance of the Scuola’s staging and its role in Venice’s public life in the Quattrocento.  An opportunity to explore a historical case example which portrays not only the reconstruction of a confraternity but the re-imagination of a wealthy institution in a contested public space. A politically-charged urban presence which went beyond the richness and physical limitations of its architecture but shed light on a renovated urban presence that boosted civic identity, social stability, and the city's elite, mercantile-driven economy. This paper uses formal analysis and XR technology to help understand an unconventional design of a facade by the architect Pietro Lombardo. A masterful piece of pictorial illusionism that was ahead of its time. A virtual space that, rather than functioning only as a scenographic device, portrayed a deep complex spatial and perceptual dynamic.

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How to Cite
Morcillo Pallares, A., McMorrough, J., Rule, J. and McMorrough, J. (2026) “Public Space, Facadism and Other Illusions: Scuola Grande di San Marco in Venice”, The Journal of Public Space, 10(2), pp. 77–96. doi: 10.32891/jps.v10i2.1879.
Issue
Vol. 10 No. 2 (2025): Past Present and Future of Public Space
Section
Articles
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Author Biographies

Ana Morcillo Pallares, University of Michigan

Ana Morcillo Pallarés is an architect, designer and researcher. Her work reflects on the use of materials and fundamental relationships between private interests and political agendas. She initiated her academic career as the 2014-2015 Walter B. Sander Research Fellow at Taubman College. Morcillo Pallarés is principal of Rumor Studio, former Morcillo Pallarés + Rule Arquitectos together with Jonathan Rule. Rumor Studio is a design and research practice based in Ann Arbor, Michigan and Cieza, Spain, whose proposals build on a body of heterogeneous projects, of multiple scales, materials as well as programmatic diversity. Her work has been featured in MONU, the Journal of Architectural Education, Civicwise, STH Press, the Journal of Public Space, Dida Press, VLC Arquitectura, and the Plan Journal, among other publications. She has exhibited work internationally in architectural venues in New York, Seville, Madrid, Santander, Murcia, Paris, Mexico City, Lima, and Dubai. Rumor Studio designs have received numerous honors, receiving ACSA Faculty Design Award, a Research Award at the XIV Spanish Architecture and Urbanism Biennial, among others highlights at design architectural competitions. She is a Registered Architect in Spain.
Morcillo Pallares holds a Ph.D. in architecture from the Escuela Técnica Superior de Madrid, Spain. She studied at the Arkitektskolen Aarhus, Denmark and Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, Spain, graduating with a professional degree in architecture from the Escuela Técnica Superior de Valencia, Spain. Her dissertation “New York City: the revitalization of public space after the 1950’s” received the ETSAM Honors Award and it has been recently published as: “Manhattan’s Public Spaces. Production, Revitalization, Commodification” (Routledge, 2022).

Jonathan Rule, University of Michigan

Jonathan Rule is an associate professor of practice at Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning. His work focuses on materials, construction systems, and building design and technology. He is an XR Faculty Innovator in Residence at the University of Michigan. He received his MArch from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and his professional degree from the Escuela Técnica Superior de Madrid (ETSAM) and BS in Architecture from SUNY Buffalo.

John McMorrough, University of Michigan

John McMorrough is an architect who writes about the relationship between design and culture with a focus on architecture’s extended field, which includes buildings, but also related media such as images (still and moving), arguments, installations, and other forms of structured content. As a partner of studioAPT, he designs scenarios at the scale of building and situation. His writing and design work has appeared in books and publications such as Perspecta, Log, Volume, Praxis, Threshold, MAS Context, and Flat Out, and he has taught theory and design at the Yale School of Architecture, the Ohio State University, the University of Applied Arts Vienna, and the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University, among other institutions. Currently, John is a professor at the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan.

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