Raimondo Tommaso D'Aronco - Major Works

Major Works

D'Aronco designed and built a large number of buildings of various types in Istanbul. The stylistic features of his works can be classified in three groups: Revivalism, reinterpretation of the Ottoman forms, Art Nouveau and Vienna Secession. Art Nouveau was first introduced to Istanbul by d'Aronco, and his designs reveal that he drew freely on Byzantine and Ottoman decoration for his inspiration. D'Aronco made creative use of the forms and motifs of Islamic architecture to create modern buildings for the city.

The buildings, which he designed at Yıldız Palace, were European in style. The best known of these are Yildiz Palace pavilions and the Yildiz Ceramic Factory (1893–1907), the Janissary Museum and the Ministry of Agriculture (1898), the fountain of Abdulhamit II (1901), Karakoy Mosque (1903), the mausoleum for the African religious leader Sheikh Zafir (1905–1906), tomb within the cemetery of Fatih Mosque (1905), Cemil Bey House at Kireçburnu (1905), clock tower for the Hamidiye-i Etfal Hospital (1906).

Casa Botter (Botter Apartmanı) (1900–1901), a seven-story workshop and residence building in İstiklâl Avenue in Beyoğlu, which he designed for the sultan’s Dutch fashion tailor M. Jean Botter, represents a turning point in D’Aronco’s architecture. This Art Nouveau design in the avant-garde mood of the period compounded D’Aronco’s already enviable reputation. While living in Graz at fourteen, he had also found the chance to follow the Austrian Secession more closely than most of his compatriots.

Around the same time, he won the Turin International Exhibition of Decorative Arts design competition, which carried his fame into the international sphere. The tiny mescid (little mosque) of Merzifonlu, which stood in Karaköy until modernization projects swept it away in 1958, was another work of comparable note.

Among the numerous private houses, which Raimondo d’Aronco designed, is the Huber House (1906) in Tarabya, built for the German weapon traders, Joseph and Baron Auguste Huber brothers of an aristocratic and wealthy family. Since 1985 the official Istanbul residence of the Turkish president.

He also built a palace for the sultan’s daughter Nazime Sultan, but this is no longer standing. The summer residence for the Italian embassy (1905) in Tarabya is one of the most striking contributions to Istanbul’s architectural heritage by D’Aronco. Planned as a classic Italian palace, the building opens directly onto the sea like a Bosporus house, together with an Italian type interior space. Broad eaves typical of Istanbul vernacular architecture cast deep shade over the terrace. The skilled welding of two cultures testifies to both D’Aronco’s interpretive skill and his affection for Istanbul.

The Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Decorativa Moderna, the International Exposure of Turin, was held 1902 and featured many works in the Art Nouveau including the main exhibition building, or Rotunda, in a Secessionist style, as well as the pavilion devoted to art photography designed by D’Aronco. He presented also a project for the building of the Regional Exposure of Udine of 1903.

In the region of his hometown, there are still many of his works, including the Neo-Gothic main cemetery in Cividale (1889), the family tomb in Udine (1898) and the Town Hall in Udine (1911–1930).

Raimondo D’Aronco died 1932 in Sanremo, Imperia in Italy. A state institute in Gemona, ISIS Istituto Statale di Istruzione Superiore, is named after him.