A PROVINCE TO BE EXPLORED - Visita Milano

Western
Brianza
The Luini-style fresco in the
parish church of S. Giulio
Curious facts
Artists in Barlassina
Barlassina has been the birthplace of
leading painters, architects and sculptors
from the second half of the 19th
century to contemporary times, the
best known being Emilio Longoni (1859-
1932). After training at the Brera Academy,
he became a strongly committed
painter in his choice of subjects and
themes with a social content. After becoming
close to pointillism, he progressively
manifested a spiritual and symbolist
inspiration, especially in his landscapes.
Mario Asnago (1896-1981) was
an architect active from 1923 on and
worked for more than 40 years with
Claudio Vender (Milan, 1904-1986). The
two professionals produced a large
body of work in Barlassina, including
the chapel of Morandi (1935), V illa
Vegni (1956), V illa Conti (1959), the
extension of the Scuole Elementari
(1961-1964), the Scuole Medie (1965-
1970) and a small villa in via Rossini,
now partially altered (1969). Valentino
Vago (1931) was known as the “painter
of light” and, in the last 15 years, also
focused on painting murals; in 1978-
1979 he decorated the premises of the
Cassa Rurale e Artigiana (now Banca
di Credito Cooperativo) in Barlassina.
busts and a bas-relief depicting P ope Clement X III,
previously known as Carlo Rezzonico.
The 20th-century architecture notably includes
the buildings of the primary and junior high
schools in via Colombo. Constructed in 1934 and
1960 by Mario Asnago and Claudio Vender, respectively,
these mark the passage from the early to late
Rationalism. They also built the nearby Casa Ve -
gni in via Trento 12. Palazzo della Cassa Rurale
e Artigiana, the work of Franco Asnaghi and Dario
Caini, dates from of 1978.
The entire west section of the municipality
forms part of the P arco Naturale R egionale delle
Groane. The “ex Tiro a Segno” area is a venue for
summer events and a cycle path links the town to
the S. Andrea woods, passing by farmland and
through wooded areas.
This first major work was fo llowed by
many more and, in 1981-82, he frescoed
the octagon and presbytery of
the c hurch o f S . G iulio; i n 1 992, th e
chapel of the Casa di Riposo Luigi Porro
and the foyer and conference room
of the Scuole Elementari; and, in 2006,
the new wing of the municipal cemetery.
Beatrice Angela Cazzaniga (1940),
who moved to Argentina with her family
in 1950, graduated in Sculptural
Arts from the Faculty of Art, Philosophy
and Letters of Tucumàn State university
(1967-1970), later becoming a
professor of Sculpture and an active
member of the American Institute of
Art. She has received numerous regional
and national prizes and awa rds
for her sculptures. Claudio Borghi
(1954), who teaches Sculptural Arts
at the Liceo Artistico in Busto Arsizio
and works with the Scuola Civica di Arti
Visive in Pavia, has participated in
numerous national and international exhibitions.
In Barlassina, he has c reated
a large sculpture in the park for the
Banca di Credito Cooperativo, the
Monument to the Fallen of all W ars
and the baptismal font in the parish
church.
Monza and its province
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