The Baroque and the Franciscan Order A dialectic relation Section Article

Abstract

Within the Master of Restoration and Patrimonial Regeneration of the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning in Timişoara, the 2018 promotion, a complex intervention is being developed on the fortified fortress in Arad. The Vauban fortress, was built in the 18th century and contains a number of buildings of great historical importance and value, made in the same period, of which the most important is a Franciscan Monastery, which was preserved almost intact. The future role of the building is a multifunctional ensemble that has been defined in a Masterplan containing the fortress and the surrounding areas. The Masterplan is conceived as a stage-based scenario of intervention on the entire fortress and takes into account the relations with the city and its needs. The monastery, with its adjacent side wings, is one of the key points of the regeneration project due to its position and symbolic value - it is in the center of the fortress, and with two other military buildings, frames the central Square of Arms. It is also the oldest building in the site and is considered to be of high patrimonial value. The monastery belongs to the Franciscan Order and plays a key role in relation to the original military functions. Since there were not many buildings inside the fortress, the general appearance of those standing is desired to be as close to the original as possible. The interior of the Monastery will have a different, contemporary treatment, respecting the current restoration doctrines. In order to perform interventions on the inside, and to make the best possible use of the physical material that has been preserved, it is necessary to thoroughly deepen the understanding of the original design concepts of such monasteries. Historical, cultural, religious and social research was carried out on the time period that the original building was built in order to underlie some of the decisions taken in the design process. The research also revealed a dialectic phenomenon: the very interesting relation between two movements that are at first site in an ideological contrast. The relation between an extremely pregnant, longstanding artistic and social movement – the Baroque; and the theological doctrines of a monastic order based on poverty, the emulation of Jesus’s life and the abnegation of all material wealth – which the Franciscan Order is based on; represents the core theme that is treated in this article.