giorgio pettenò architetti

the parish complex of the madonna del carmine originates from the will of the archdiocese of sorrento-castellamare di stabia to have a new and larger church in the locality of petraro near the municipality of santa maria la carità. the complex is part of a context characterized by large green areas and the looming but spectacular presence of mount vesuvius in the background. compositionally the project is divided into three areas: on the left the sports center, in the center the church square with the church and on the right the cloister. a large cross carved on a vertical surface supports the bell tower and is the main entrance to the church. the first reference of the new factory is the basilica of sant’andrea in mantua by leon battista alberti. in fact, as in sant’andrea, there are two fundamental themes: the sizing of the main facade inscribed in a square and the use of a barrel vault placed in the internal aisle. the vault made of sandblasted glass allows the entrance of a filtered light coming only from the roof giving a high spiritual aura to the liturgical hall. it becomes the real focal point of the whole complex, a point of union between heaven and earth, between man and god. the installation of the liturgical room includes the baptismal font placed in a niche on the left of the entrance, the presbytery made up of the altar, the ambo, the seat of the president and a large cross carved on the back wall so that it can be illuminated by external light. along the east wall is the working chapel in whose altar the eucharistic custody is placed. on the west wall there is the penitential area while from the south wall through a staircase you can access the first floor where there is the choir and the organ. the parish complex maintains a constant height of 7.50 meters, excluding the liturgical hall and the bell tower that reach a height of 15.00 meters. you enter the churchyard through a staircase beyond which you can go beyond the church, the cloister and the parish hall. after passing through the cloister, one can finally access the premises of the pastoral ministry consisting of eight teaching rooms and the canonical house.