About This Project

COPPEDE’ (2017)
In the heart of Rome, a stone’s throw from the city center, is one of the most characteristic neighborhoods of the city. Actually, it’s not a real neighborhood, rather a specific corner of Rome with unexpected and bizarre features, a fantastic mixture of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, influenced by Greek, Gothic, Baroque and even medieval art.
This is Coppedè neighborhood, a structure of 26 blocks of flats and 17 small houses which are located between Salaria and Nomentana streets. At the entrance of Coppedè is a huge ornately decorated arch that connects the two apartments of the ambassadors, from which a large wrought iron chandelier is suspended. This arch was built between 1913 and 1926 by the eclectic architect, Gino Coppedè, after whom the neighborhood is named.
Around Mincio square, there is a group of buildings, an incredible pastiche of different architectural languages which immerse the visitor in the opulent and slightly artificial atmosphere of the beginning of the 20th century. In the middle of the Mincio square there is the Fountain of the Frogs: a massive fountain inhabited by 12 frogs. The fountain is also famous for the dip that the Beatles took after their concert in the nearby Piper Nightclub. The square is surrounded by buildings differing in shape and size; the two most important, decorated in an overabundant and fantastic way are: the Spider Palazzina of Assyrian-Babylonian inspiration that stands out for a large spider on the facade and the Villino delle Fate (Cottage of the fairies) characterized by a total asymmetry, with medieval arches and friezes, made by merging different materials, such as marble, brick, travertine, pottery, glass. This fantastic and evocative site of Rome has inspired many directors who have set their films here.