Decorum and Comfort in Serlio's Domestic Architecture and the House of Delorme

Abstract

Sebastiano Serlio proposed appropriately decorated dwellings for the poor and the rich in his Book VI, Domestic Architecture, combining the Italian concept of ‘decorum' (appropriate ornamentation) and the French concept, ‘comfort' (function). Serlio's diverse cultural experiences in cities and his inheritance of Vitruvian tradition of ‘decor' and ‘distributio' became criteria for evaluating building appearance and use. In contrast, Philibert Delorme pursued French independent style and the honesty of structure and ornament, and relied upon the cause of Protestantism. The House of Delorme could be regarded as an urban prototype for Protestant dwelling. Serlio's and Delorme's works have a historical significance that pursued realistic domestic architecture in response to social and cultural change. Influenced by their own cultural, religious, and social experience, they designed socially appropriate dwellings, focusing on 1) decorum in façade design, 2) comfort in plan design, and 3) urban intervention in site design. © 2006, Architectural Institute of Japan. All rights reserved.