| Title |
Typological Approach and Architectural Significance of the San Cataldo Cemetery Designed by Aldo Rossi |
| DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5659/JAIK.2026.42.6.157 |
| Keywords |
Aldo Rossi; San Cataldo Cemetery; typology; memory; place identity; experiential space; funerary architecture |
| Abstract |
This study analyzes the architectural significance of Aldo Rossi's The Cemetery of San Cataldo by revisiting existing typological and
memory-centered interpretations, focusing on how typology transforms into emotional experience and ontological awareness. Unlike previous
studies that treat Rossi's architecture through fixed typologies, collective memory, or historical context, this research redefines typology as a
generative structure that evokes experience, exploring how architectural space sensuously constructs the boundaries between memory and
forgetting, and life and death. The methodology begins with a reconstruction of Rossi's architectural theory through a literature review,
emphasizing type, memory, and place, and interpreting these concepts from emotional and phenomenological perspectives. Analysis of Rossi’s
major works then establishes the interaction of type, memory, and experience as an analytical framework. Applying this framework to San
Cataldo, the study examines how layout, form, and spatial composition convert typological order into emotional experience. Findings indicate
that the cemetery reproduces urban structure through repeated and varied geometric types, extending typology into an interpretable structure
rather than a fixed form. The repetition, emptiness, and incompleteness of space evoke memory while allowing forgetting, positioning
architecture as a medium where memory and absence intersect. Finally, sensory experiences shaped by light, materials, and movement reveal
the boundary between life and death, transforming tangible order into an ontological spatial encounter. In conclusion, while rooted in
typology, San Cataldo extends architectural form into emotional and experiential dimensions, demonstrating that architecture mediates human
existence, time, and memory. This study contributes academically by expanding typological discourse in Rossi scholarship and re-examining
architectural space through the interaction of type and experience. |