The Perfect Square
圣玛利亚大教堂（Santa Maria Novella）是早期文艺复兴时期建筑最典型的例子之一，但这很大程度上是因为莱昂·巴蒂斯塔·阿尔伯蒂(Leon Battista Alberti)在十五世纪中叶为教堂设计的正立面。
Santa Maria Novella is one of the most typical examples of early Renaissance architecture, but this is mainly because of the facade design by Leon Battista Alberti in the middle of the fifteenth century.
阿尔伯蒂是商人洛伦佐·阿尔伯蒂和一位寡妇的两位私生子之一，因其私生子的身份，阿尔伯蒂幼时便与父亲迁居威尼斯。在威尼斯，他师从巴尔西萨（Barsizza），获得了良好的教育，并于1428年获得博洛尼亚大学学士学位。阿尔伯蒂热心文学创作，且热衷于艺术研究，著有《论绘画》（De Pictura, 1435》，《论雕塑》（De Statua,1446)，《论建筑》（De re aedificatoria, 1452）等在文艺复兴时期举足轻重的著作。
Alberti was one of two illegitimate children of businessman Lorenzo Alberti and a widow. Because of his illegitimate son, Alberti moved to Venice with his father when he was a child. In Venice, he studied under Barsizza, receiving a bachelor’s degree from the University of Bologna in 1428. Alberti was enthusiastic about literary creation and artistic research, including some notable works like De Pictura (1435), De Statua (1446), and De re aedificatoria (1452) which had become the masterpieces of Renaissance.
阿尔伯蒂认为艺术创作应当基于自然。他通过不断地观察和研究，将数学原理引入艺术造型的创作之中，以找到建筑中的“黄金分割”，达到整体的和谐和自然。阿尔伯蒂对数字的执着，对秩序的追求与另一位建筑大师菲利波·布鲁内莱斯基共通，两位大师都是早期文艺复兴的重要推动者。
Alberti believes that artistic creation should be based on nature. Through continuous observation and research, he introduced mathematical principles into the creation of artistic shapes in order to find the “golden section” in architecture and achieve overall harmony and nature. Alberti’s dedication to numbers and the pursuit of the order are common to another architect, Filippo Brunelleschi, both masters of the early Renaissance.
阿尔伯蒂将其“数学x艺术”的观念应用于圣玛利亚大教堂正立面的设计上。教堂的正面最初采用哥特式风格，阿尔伯蒂在此基础上融合了罗马元素。他为立面的顶端设计了一个小型伪古典的三角形尖顶。第二层加入古希腊神庙山墙的元素，中间为一个圆形玫瑰花窗，两侧则是圆形（蜗卷状）墙饰。下层采用宽大的壁架式拱廊设计，内含三个门廊和六个坟墓。
Alberti applied his “mathematics x art” concept to the design of the facade of the Basilica of Santa Maria. The facade of the church was originally in Gothic style, and Alberti incorporated Roman elements on this basis. He designed a small pseudo-classical triangular spire for the top of the facade. The second layer adds elements of the ancient Greek temple gable, with a circular rose window in the middle and round (scroll-shaped) wall decorations on both sides. The lower floor features a large ledge-style arcade design, containing three porches and six graves.
从比例上看，正立面的高度和其宽度相等，因此整个立面为一个正方形。以檐口为线，立面的上半部分是面积为主正方形四分之一的小正方形，立面的下半部分则是宽度为高度两倍的长方形。下部被拱廊勾勒出的区域以为正方形，边长为主正方形的三分之一。阿尔伯蒂的设计将立面分为多块区域，但区域之间又通过比例互相关联（1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 2:3等）。
From a proportional perspective, the height of the facade is equal to its width, so the entire facade is a square. Taking the cornice as a line, the upper half of the facade is a small square with a quarter of the main square, and the lower half of the facade is a rectangle with a width twice the height. The area outlined by the arcade in the lower part is square, and the side length is one-third of the main square. Alberti’s design divides the facade into multiple areas, but the areas are related to each other through proportions (1: 1, 1: 2, 1: 3, 2: 3, etc.).
