La Tomba Brion

Visit to Scarpa's cemetery near Treviso, 23rd August

In 1968, Carlo Scarpa began designing an addition to an existing small cemetery in San Vito d'Altivole, near Treviso in Italy. He was commissioned by Onorina Tomasi Brion to create a private burial enclosure for her family, which was completed in 1978. Scarpa was also buried there, alongside the Brion sanctuary in a secluded space with a very modest tombstone. There are many elements to the Brion enclosure, including a small chapel, a large lawn, and a pool with decorative water channels extending into the site. A sloped concrete enclosing wall just reveals the tops of corn growing in the agricultural fields surrounding the area. Brion's complex comprises a large amount of the overall cemetery, and is separated from the more typical Italian mausoleums by locked entrances.