DISCOVERY / Architecture & Adaptation
At Querini Stampalia, the water comes in.
Carlo Scarpa’s ground floor at the Fondazione Querini Stampalia gives water a visible place in the building.
Image: Fondazione Querini StampaliaPublished 4 November 2026 · WHV
The entrance from the canal is a good place to begin looking at Scarpa’s work at the Querini Stampalia. Between 1959 and 1963 he reorganised the ground floor and made a garden in the courtyard. The foundation describes water as a deliberate element of the sequence, from canal reflections to the garden.
Follow the transitions from the waterside entrance into the portego and out towards the garden. Look for the different heights, channels and small changes of material. The intervention gives a physical form to the boundary between a building and the city’s water.
The foundation documents work by several architects. Use its guide to distinguish Scarpa’s ground floor from the later changes, and check current opening and access before visiting.
Evidence & sources.
- Fondazione Querini Stampalia, architectural interventions (opens source in a new tab)
- Fondazione architectural notes (opens source in a new tab)
Scope of this reading
This is a reading of Scarpa’s architectural intervention. Current flood behaviour, conservation and access depend on conditions and the operation of the building.
Sources checked 4 November 2026.
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